Continuum
by AikaWusHereRawr
Summary: Five years ago, Kuroko Tetsuya would have never thought he would have enough guts to punch Akashi Seijuro. And if Midorima Shintarou had known he would end up working at a McDonalds in five years, he would have worked much, much harder than he already did at school. More details inside. Partially AU, multi-chapter, multi-pairing. OCs included.
1. Preface

**A/N: **Hello, guys. I'm not dead. And I _know, know. _Before you say it; I am _not _discontinuing A Heart of Fire. I'm just having certain... problems with it right now. It's very infuriating. I've got the whole thing planned out, but I just can't seem to put it into words. God damned emotional traumas, I swear. But please, please, _please _do be loyal to it, I promise I'll continue it as soon as I get inspired.

Anyhow, let's take a look-see at this fanfiction. I've been yearning to write a Kuroko no Basuke fanfiction for _ages, _But I just couldn't seem to get it right. I tried it for several different pairings, but it just didn't seem to work. So what did I do? Bam! I combined the pairings to form one multi-pairing fanfiction. This is going to be a MomoixAomine (Sorry, MomoixKuroko fans! I love them, too. But I really, really love these two, as well. And I got inspired for this story around this pairing, so I can't change it. I hope you like it anyway), HyuugaxRiko, KagamixOC, KurokoxOC, AkashixOC, MidorimaxOC, MurasakibaraxOC and KisexOC. Too much? ... Maybe. It's definitely going to be a handful to carry around. But I'm going to do it. Because I already love this story.

So here it is. Y'all be warned, though. I have my O'level examinations this October/November, so I'm _dreadfully _busy. (The workload they give us here is terrifying). My updates _will _be slow, but... I don't know. I just _might_ get inspired if you guys review. :3 _  
_

Please, please, do read and review. It's the first time I'm writing something like this.

* * *

**Five years  
**

_Preface_

* * *

If you had walked up to Satsuki Momoi five years ago and told her, "You're going to marry Aomine Daiki," she would have laughed in your face. Moreover, she would have also stated very firmly that they were just friends, and they forever will be.

If you had told this to Aomine Daiki, he would have pulled a smirk, and just walked away without even bothering to reply.

Five years ago, if you had told Aida Riko that she would one day coach the National Basketball Team of Japan, she would have pulled a despondent face and muttered, "I wish."

Five years ago, Kuroko Tetsuya would have never thought he would have enough guts to punch Akashi Seijuro.

Akashi Seijuro would have never thought Tetsuya could punch in the first place.

It took five years for Murasakibara Atsushi to learn how to decline a sweet.

If Midorima Shintarou had known he would end up working at a McDonalds in five years, he would have worked much, _much _harder than he already did at school.

Within the expanse of five years, Kise Ryouta loved and lost the same person. More than once.

Five years passed before Kagami Taiga realized he was fighting a lost cause.

Five years was all it took for these young men and women to mature, to experience several hardships they never would have imagined they would face within _just five years. _But life never turns out the way it is expected to, and fate never decides to correlate with the way people plan their days to be. But to everyone's surprise, every unexpected result and every shocking development are almost often the bits and pieces of a picture which, when combined together, create something they never thought would have been created. Perhaps things may not conclude the way you might have planned it to, but perhaps it wouldn't end out as bad as you thought it would otherwise.

On the contrary, life, fate, hopes and dreams often mix together to form... something extraordinary.

But of course, you would never believe it until you experience it happening; just like the young men and women you will meet in this peculiar story.

* * *

**A/N: **Well, I hope you've gotten a little idea about where this is going to go, now. I really, really hope you guys review! The first chapter is coming up... right now. I can't wait. I'm too jittery. _Eep. _

_Please, please review! _


	2. Prologue: The Flyer

**The Flyer **

_Chapter I _

* * *

It was a bright, sunny June day, and Tokyo city was relishing the lovely weather. Several families found themselves taking day trips, or just milling about in the park, but the students of Tokyo Prefecture were not quite as lucky. Their first trimester exams were coming in less than a month, and though several wished otherwise, even fine weather could not shake a well-structured education system.

Sunlight filtered in through the glass windows that stood opposite the classroom doors. The definite, yet altogether not unpleasant, buzz of everyday chatter milled in throughout the corridors as the students of Seiren High shifted classes. The second years of Aida Riko's class would now be heading for their History class, where they would be forced to spend yet another forty minutes listening to a boring lecture while all of them would really rather be spending their time outside. Aida Riko herself, however, was not heading to the fourth floor, where Juujin-sensei's classroom was.

She was drifting downstairs, towards the principal's office, lost deep in thought. An excited hall monitor scurried forward as soon as she reached the ground floor, but fell back dismally upon noticing the permit in her hand. Riko was not aware of any of this. In fact, she was not even wondering about why the principal, a somewhat eccentric, supposedly stern (as he wishes, anyway), middle-aged man, had summoned her. No; the pixie-haired brunette's thoughts were decidedly upon the ongoing Interhigh Preliminaries.

After their defeat by Touou, her team had been unable to play well. Riko's mood had been gradually darkening as the tournament drew to a close, but it did not falter her resolve. There was always the Winter Cup - and no one in Kanto would dare say that Seirin, a relatively new team, did _badly_ this year.

No sooner than she drew to a halt in front of the principal's office, his deep, booming voice called out from behind the closed door. "Come in."

Riko complied, and bowed slightly as soon as she entered. "Ohayo Gozaimasu, Kouchou-sensei." The room was brightly lit and well furnished, albeit not very spacy. The walls were painted a neutral beige, and on it stood several framed pictures of the Seirin High School building. It was also air-conditioned, and though Riko liked the sunny weather, she was grateful for the comforting chill of the enclosed room.

Nakamura Choza sat in a leather revolving chair behind his mahogany desk; an energetic, bespectacled, healthy thirty-five year old with dark hair. He nodded to the younger teen, indicating she should sit in the considerably less fancy chair that stood in front of the table. Riko did so.

"Seirin did quite well this year, didn't they? Right up until the Touou match..." He started chattering almost immediately. Riko nodded absently.

"Yes, that's right."

"Well, when's your next match?" He asked very seriously. Riko sighed; things like this were usually to be expected from their somewhat immature principal. He once asked her whether their _Japanese _high school teamcould participate in the NBA. _Last _year. "The tournament isn't over yet, is it?"

"Yes, but we didn't advance to the league finals, so it's pretty much over for us." She said inattentively.

He blinked, genuinely concerned. "... What? You mean, _permanently_? That _really _can't be! Hold up, let me call the sports advisor..."

Riko suppressed a groan, snapping out of her thought-induced reverie. "No, not _permanently,_ Kouchou-sensei. We've qualified for the Winter Cup this year. You know, the one that's held during the winter?" You might think that last bit was a little unnecessary, but Nakamura Choza knew as much about Interschool Basketball as did the trees in the compound. Actually, the trees probably knew _more._

"_Ohh..._ is that good, then?"

"Yes. Very."

"I see." A short silence followed this statement, and Riko resumed her dream-like musing, formulating training plans and setting out practice schedules and regimens for the Winter Cup. The principal adjusted the daisies that stood in a vase atop his table, right next to his student records. Atop the records lay a certain flyer, and if Riko had been slightly attentive, she might have noticed it.

"Aida," the principal took on a more serious tone, and Riko half-heartedly oriented her attention towards him.

"Yes, sensei?"

Choza took his time. He removed his spectacles and wiped it clean with a tissue he carried around specifically for that purpose before adorning them again. He also clasped his hands together and placed it on the table, observing Riko as he did so. She remained politely impassive, waiting for him to speak.

"I know you are extremely busy with the Seirin team, but I'm afraid I must have to ask a favor of you." He considered his words for a moment, then shook his head. "_No, _rather, I need you to attend some place as a representative of this school."

Slightly interested, Riko mentally set aside her training (torture) regimens, and tilted her head to one side. "A representative?" She asked in surprise. "Me?"

"Why not? You're well behaved-" He reconsidered this; Riko could not help but smirk -"Well behaved enough, at least. You receive good marks, and I'm sure you certainly have enough school spirit." This was when Riko noticed the pink flyer atop the table, and reached out for it when the principal held it out.

**Annual Spring Festival, Tokyo, Japan**

_As a celebration of the wonderful spring season, where cherry blossoms shower us with their lovely colors, and the spring breeze blows within our souls, MEXT (Ministry of Education, Sports, Science, Culture & Technology of Japan) has decided to host an annual spring festival next year, organized, carried out and conveyed by selected school students of Honshu. _

_Schools are required to send at least **one **representative to a meeting which will be held per week at Yoyogi Park (Shibuya, Tokyo) to discuss the happenings of the festival... _

This was followed by a map indicating the location of Yoyogi Park (Riko personally thought a person would have to be _blind _if they had even visited Tokyo once and still didn't know where _Yoyogi _Park was), and additional details about sponsors. Riko looked up from the flyer to look into the principal's expectant eyes.

"Well?" He asked eagerly. "Are you up for it? Oh yeah, and Seinen Haruka from the freshmen year will join you. That's alright, isn't it?"

Riko considered it. On one hand, she was going to be terribly busy with practices... but on the other hand, it would look considerably good on her CV, and hell, why not? It wouldn't hurt to make a few friends.

Little did Riko know that when she would be attending the meeting precisely at 5 pm on a particularly sunny summer afternoon (June 21st), she would be regretting her decision immensely. But since it was something she did not know, she gave a smile to the principal, and nodded.

"Definitely."

* * *

"You're kidding me, right, Momoi?" Aomine Daiki cried out incredulously after reading the flyer his pink-haired friend was holding. "You're the team _manager_! We have the Interhigh finals against Rakuzan the day after that meeting, and honestly speaking; a Spring _Festival? _You ain't serious, right?"

Momoi did not reply to this uncharacteristically long speech, but instead smiled at the blue-haired sixteen-year-old cheekily. "Aw, Dai-chan, you _care_!"

Aomine rolled his eyes and reverted his attention back to the clouds - they were on the rooftop, incidentally (Momoi had been trying to get him to return to class when he noticed the flyer) - before snorting. He fell back onto the cement roof, blue eyes indifferent. "I'm not losing against Akashi."

"Right. Because that's definitely the reason you're so worried about the match. I thought you weren't playing, anyway." Momoi stood up, meaning to return back to class. She took on a slightly serious tone. "But do come to practice today, mm, Dai-chan?"

"Yeah, whatever." Aomine replied carelessly, watching the cherry-haired girl retreat. Her long hair swung from side to side as she walked, and she _was_ really quite curvy... _Kami,_ Aomine noticed, his eyes traveling up her long, creamy legs, _the idiot's wearing her skirt cut too low again. _

"I can see your panties." He pointed out shamelessly. Aomine saw her blush furiously, grab the ends of her skirt and pull it down indignantly.

"Dai-chan, you... you _perv!" _She yelled, glaring.

"Whatever you say, strawberry-prints."

"I _swear_ to god, Aomine Daiki..."

He really could not help but smile when she was around. "Is anyone from here going with you?" He asked in what he hoped was an offhanded tone.

"Yeah, that Mamoru girl. Enko."

"The red-haired one from our class? You know her?" He asked, surprised.

"Do you?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, but she's a pretty silent chick, isn't she?"

Satsuki Momoi raised an eyebrow, turning her back to the blue-haired teenager. "That's... not quite the right word."

* * *

Mamoru Enko eyed the flyer in her hand derisively, as she sat in class, not paying attention to anything the teacher was saying. Why on Earth should she attend this stupid meeting? She was supposed to play basketball with her brother at that time. Why the hell did the school even care about bullshit like this? Wasn't she attending this hellhole for the grades? Her grades were _fine_, she couldn't be bothered with extra-curriculars.

And worse, she had to attend the stupid meeting with that ridiculous pink-haired, idiotic Satsuki Momoi. She had absolutely _nothing _in common with girls like that.

Her amber eyes narrowed at the piece of paper angrily. _Guess there's no way out of this now. _

* * *

"Ryou-kun!" Kise Ryouta paused in his tracks and looked back to see a petite, willowy brunette run after him, clutching a flyer. He smiled.

"Rai-chan," he grinned, turning around to face the girl. Inoue Raiha grinned back at the fair-haired teen, her wavy brunette hair falling in just the right way about her shoulders. When she smiled, it accentuated the tiny beauty spot on her chin.

"Did you see this?" She asked of her best friend, holding out the flyer in her hand.

"Oh yeah, next year's Spring Festival." Kise nodded in acknowledgement. "Kumikochii's helping to run it." His oldest sister, Kumiko, was an employee at MEXT. "I'd have volunteered, but they want the girls to be leading it this time, so..." Kise had to inadvertently stop when he caught her eye. She did have quite nice blue eyes.

"Well, I'm sure Kumiko-chan can help me out with it a bit. I'll go over today." Her grin widened. She ran off. "See you, Ryouta-kun."

"Laters, Rai-chan."

She halted a few ways across from him, and then turned back. "Oh yeah, Kaoru-chan's coming too. I'll send her your regards!"

* * *

"I'm home." Hanamachi Kaoru called out to nobody in particular as she toed out of her sneakers and arranged it neatly on the shelf her mother kept for that purpose. She wondered whether her parents were home, but then realized her mother had a court case that evening. Otou-san, of course, was at Canada for an Athletics' tournament.

She let her dishwater blonde hair loose from its ponytail, letting it curl over her shoulders. Her hair was getting quite long; it would get in her eyes while she ran if she didn't cut it soon. Dropping her schoolbag onto the luxurious black sofa sitting in front of the deluxe flat screen television, she walked over to the kitchen counter, holding a very offending piece of paper.

After pouring herself a glass of milk, she sat down by the kitchen table and studied the flyer in her hand. The meeting on June 21st was at the same time as track practice; she would have to talk her way out of practice that day. God damn that accursed principal of her school (Shutoku), she just knew the woman was out to get her. Coach Takeshi was already in a foul mood with her because she performed so terribly during the last tournament. Perhaps she could bribe Chikyu to convince Midorima Shintarou to talk to Coach. For some reason, that atrocious man had taken an unreasonable liking to the overgrown basketball player in her class. He was a self-conceited, cynical ass in her opinion.

_"Now, now, Kaoru," _Chikyu would have said, "_the pot shouldn't call the kettle black." _Hmph. _Chikyu _was a self-conceited, cynical ass.

Her cell rang, disrupting her thoughts. She answered without bothering to check the caller ID.

"Hanamachi residence." She answered automatically.

"Oi, Hanamachi." A high, ringing voice spoke immediately. Oh, _great_. Just _lovely. _It was Kikuchi Rina; an infuriatingly irritating girl she had met a few tournaments ago. A sprinter like her, from a school named Yosen. She had won the 100m medal she lost last time.

"Yeah, what do you want, Kikuchi?" She asked impatiently.

"Got the god darned flyer too, did you?"

Kaoru made a face. _She _was going to be there, too? _Wonderful. _"I'm surprised they're letting you go, Kikuchi. Are you sure you _know _how to behave in public?"

"Shut it, Hanamachi, stop whining. So I take it you're going?"

The blonde sighed. "I don't have much choice." She said dryly.

"Lovely. Anybody else going from that shit school of yours?"

Kaoru was pretty much used to Rina's rudeness after five years of having to put up with it. "No. They don't need to send a babysitter with me wherever I go."

"Now, now, _fourth place._ Let's not be jealous." _Bitch. _A pause. Then: "Isn't Shintarou going?"

Good _God. _There it was again. What was it that everybody saw in that galling bastard? "Not as far as I know." She replied curtly before adding. "Raiha's going from Kaijo." Inoue Raiha had gone to the same junior high school as Kaoru did. She was nice enough, and Kaoru probably would have appreciated the fact that she was going if Rina hadn't gotten the invitation.

"She's a whore." Yes, altercations would definitely be coming. Kikuchi Rina and Inoue Raiha had had a slight spat near the end of Junior High, concerning... well, it was better not to mention it.

"She's still better company than you are. Who are they sending to look after you, this time?"

"Some transfer student from a poor district in Sanjo. Some cunt named Iwamura Sen. Either way, I bet she's a wimp."

Kaoru sighed. "I haven't gotten time for your crap, Kikuchi. I'll talk to you later." She hung up before the other female could reply. She relished the silence for a few moments, and her foul mood deepened considerably.

The coming Saturday was _definitely _going to be unpleasant.

* * *

**A/N: **Okay. So I cheated. That was a sorry excuse of a chapter. That was more like a prologue. But I'm publishing it before I get any second thoughts. Anyway. What do you think, guys? I tried to make the OCs as un-Mary-Sue as possible. I want them to be as realistic as can be. But I'm still not very sure about them, yet. We'll find out more in the next chapter. But please **do _review._**

Pretty please?


	3. Please, be my baby

**"Please, be my baby"**

_Chapter II_

* * *

**June 21st, 2013**

* * *

_(Raiha)_

Inoue Raiha liked a lot about Midorima Shintarou. She liked how his emerald locks brushed against her forehead when he stooped down to kiss her. She liked how his strong arms would wound around her waist and play with her chestnut hair. She _really_ liked the feel of his abs through the thin layer of his jersey.

And at that moment, when both teens were having a private moment behind the Shutoku gymnasium after the Shutoku basketball team's practice, Raiha was liking all of these traits very, very much.

Midorima Shintarou was a _really_ good kisser.

"Ne, Tarou-kun?" She asked when they finally pulled apart. She unwound herself from the green-haired boy's grip, and leaned against the gymnasium wall, next to him. It was a sunny afternoon, but the roof of the gym shielded them from the blaze.

"Hm?" He grunted noncommittally, still slightly out of breath. The brunette standing by couldn't help but stare at how his perfectly sculpted chest rose and fell, and how lustful his dark, _dark_ green eyes looked, half-lidded as it was.

Shintarou and Raiha had been dating for several months now (a fact she proudly boasted), since they first got together at the end of Junior High. Midorima Shintarou tried to act like he didn't care about Raiha, but he never exactly _told_ her he didn't. And in Midorima's case, with him being so... _tsundere,_ Raiha figured that it was as close to love as it would probably get. Besides, he was smart, athletic, popular _and_ good-looking. That was all a girl could ask for.

(She knew someone else who also fit that description... But it didn't matter).

"Yeah, Raiha?" He asked again, regaining his composure. Adjusting his glasses, he leaned against the wall. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and checked the time; "It's 4.30, nanodayo. Don't you have to go to Yoyogi Park at 5?"

Raiha pulled away from the wall, and slid in front of Shintarou, wrapping her arms across his neck, forcing him to look down at her (Standing at 5'4, she wasn't exactly SHORT, but _kami,_ Shintarou was a giant).

"Aw, Tarou-kun, come on. Yoyogi Park is just around the corner."

Here, she smiled at him coquettishly and stood up on her toes to kiss him once on the lips (she _still_ wouldn't have reached them if the much taller boy hadn't brought his lips down to meet hers). "Fifteen more minutes?"

She was rewarded with an extremely rare, albeit tiny, smile (her heart fluttered). "I suppose fate has allowed my shower to wait."

"Good, because I was just going to tell you that you look unbearably irresistible like that." She replied shamelessly.

Shintarou didn't reply. Instead, he spun the girl around so that he was facing the wall, and pressed his lips to hers heatedly. She smiled at him in between kisses, and he would sometimes nuzzle her ear. She would mewl softly sometimes when they got too intense, and eventually his breathing would get heavier. They stayed this way for a long time, and when Takao Kazunari came at 4.45 to pick Midorima up so that they could walk home together, he was sent away.

_Oh god, _yes.

Midorima Shintarou was _such _a good kisser.

(She couldn't help but wonder about... _him,_ at that moment. Was _he _a good kisser, as well?)

Yes. Inoue Raiha liked a lot about Midorima Shintarou. But those were only superficial features. She only loved the exterior of Midorima Shintarou; she probably didn't even realize there was a person hiding underneath all that muscle. Midorima Shintarou liked a lot about Inoue Raiha, too; but then again, he didn't actually _like _her.

Inoue Raiha and Midorima Shintarou hadn't found love just yet, but they were more than pleased with what they had.

(For now.)

* * *

_(Riko)_

The sun would be setting at 6.59 pm. Now, it was 4.50 pm, and it was still light outside. The afternoon was just the right mixture of warm and breezy; Tokyo city was still blessed with it's wonderful weather. Many of it's citizens were out on walks, and this included two particular teens who were lazily walking down a certain street in the Shibuya district, towards it's famous _Yoyogi_ Park. Almost an hour had passed after Seirin's practice had ended, but Hyuuga Junpei was still by Aida Riko's side, despite her many protests that he go home.

"I can drop you off on the way," he insisted, "it's not that far from home."

"Yoyogi Park is in an entirely other _district _from your home, _baka_."

"We can discuss training plans!"

"_We _can discuss how you need to rest after practice!"

But however many times Riko had emphasized that he go home, the bespectacled, dark-haired boy by her side was at least thrice as persistent. And eventually, Aida Riko had to give in to his mediocre excuses, and they were walking towards Yoyogi Park together, the former wearing a triumphant smirk.

"So what's this meeting about, anyway?" He finally asked, several minutes later.

Riko frowned slightly. "I don't really know. Apparently we're to have a festival for spring next year, and _according _to this flyer-" Here, she held out the pink A4 paper in her hand -"representatives would be coming from four other schools. I don't know which ones they are, though."

"You're the only one going from Seirin?"

"No, Haruka-san's also going."

"Haruka? The kid who passed the entrance exam with a hundred percent score? Whoa, I heard she's _really _smart."

Riko laughed here and punched Hyuuga lightly. "Aren't I smart? I went second from the exams last year."

"You're definitely smarter than me; I went 112th!" They laughed at this, and then the bespectacled boy added cheekily. "You still didn't get a perfect score, did you?"

"Oh suck it, Hyuuga-kun, I scored better than you did."

The taller male laughed, and they continued walking in the afternoon breeze in silence. Aida Riko had the oddest feeling just then; she wanted to hold his _hand_. She observed him through the corner of her eye.

Standing at 5'10, with short, spiky black hair and a healthy (yet not what you would call _built) _build, Hyuuga Junpei wasn't what you would really call a jaw-dropping, heartbreakingly handsome idol. But somehow, Riko found tranquility in his dark, bespectacled eyes; she found ease in the way he laughed; she found comfort in the way he walked.

_That _was odd. That was extremely odd. This was her friend Hyuuga. Being his closest friend; she was not _permitted _to have feelings for him. Besides, she was his _coach_.

No. Aida Riko was definitely not allowed to have feelings for Hyuuga Junpei.

(But not for long.)

Neither of them spoke, but the air around them seemed to go cold, nonetheless. Hyuuga noticed the change in the atmosphere, and turned his head towards the shorter brunette.

"You okay, Riko?"

Riko pursed her lips. "Everything's fine."

"Really? You don't seem..."

"I said I'm _fine_."

Hyuuga opened his mouth to reply, but then closed it again. His eyes focused on a point somewhere behind Riko, and oddly, he blushed. She stopped walking, and turned around to face him. The second-year brunette narrowed her eyes at the black-haired boy. "What's wrong, Hyuuga-kun?"

If Hyuuga Junpei had gotten the chance to speak, then things would have gone very differently. If he had said what he wanted to say, then the tense air between the two second-years would have most likely turned into something else completely. If Hyuuga Junpei had spoken, then Aida Riko would have gone to bed completely happy that night. But he didn't, and so, as things proved, it progressed from bad to worse.

The tense atmosphere increased tenfold when a mitigating factor arrived in the form of Satsuki Momoi.

"Riko-san," she exclaimed cheerfully (God, Riko _hated_ her), "did you get the flyer?" She held out her similar pink sheet, which Riko wanted to tear into a million pieces. She halted to a stop next to the brunette, who suddenly felt very imperfect in comparison.

Riko forced a smile which must have looked more like a painful grimace, because Hyuuga recoiled in alarm at her expression. The beautiful pinkette beside her suddenly seemed distracted by a sight she saw behind the two second-years, and so didn't see her terrifying countenance.

What was it that boys saw in pink-haired girls? She'd seen people go absolutely nutty over natural pinkettes. Riko's eyes traced down Momoi's long, thick cherry hair and she suddenly felt very conscious about her own messy brown locks. And what she would do to have breasts as big as _that_...

The beauty in question spoke just then, her petal-like lips widening into a grin. "Haruka-chan! Hold up! Where've you been?"

She shook her head, alerting herself back to reality, to find that a new arrival had come to the group. She was shorter than her, and was dressed in the Seirin uniform, but unlike Riko, her uniform was ironed, smooth and proper; right down to the green tie around her collar. She had lovely dark hair - tinted green - that reached up to her slim, narrow waist. Her similarly dark emerald eyes seemed to glitter in the afternoon sun, and her alabaster skin dimmed that of Momoi's in comparison.

There was no doubt about the fact that she was absolutely exquisite.

"Riko-san, Hyuuga-kun, meet my best friend from Junior High: Haruka! I see she's studying at Seirin..."

The new threat scrutinized Riko's appearance with a raised eyebrow, but did not comment.

Until that moment, Aida Riko had never felt so insignificant.

And then Hyuuga opened his mouth, and made things a million times worse:

"Oh my god! You must be Seinen Haruka! I heard you were really smart.."

This was the _worst_ day of her life.

* * *

Three minutes past five and only slightly late, the three high schoolers finally found themselves entering Yoyogi Park before they knew it. Hyuuga-kun had returned home upon Riko's request, insisting that she finally had company now. Satsuki Momoi had maintained the conversation between them somehow, and considering that neither Riko not Haruka spoke, it was quite a feat. While Riko remained ominously silent, Haruka offered few tidbits and "mmhm"s to the conversation. While not together enthusiastic about the conversation, she noticed Haruka wasn't _completely_ apathetic to Momoi's words. If Riko had to guess after considering Haruka's silent demeanor, she would have called her a quiet yet not necessarily unfriendly teenager. In any case, Satsuki Momoi was very pleased to see her, and had hugged her several times already.

At least _someone _was having fun.

"I think they're sitting in the small pavilion near the fountain around the bend up there," the pinkette indicated towards the curve in the pathway they were walking down on presently,_ "_They would have picked somewhere conspicuous, right?"

"Probably." Haruka replied simply.

The sun hung low in the now slightly orange sky, and the mirthful laughter of young children filled the atmosphere. A man stood at one edge of the path, selling snacks by a vendor. Somewhere across the grass field beyond the path, a woman was giving away helium balloons to people. It really _was _a lovely day, and Riko tried very much to block out the other two's conversation. Perhaps it would be easier once they joined with the others.

They walked around the bend serenely, eying the small garden pavilion only several that could fit maybe about ten people comfortably. Riko didn't feel the least bit apprehensive about meeting their companions; rather, she wanted to get away from the other two as quickly as she could.

As the trio got closer, they realized something was wrong. They couldn't see inside the pavilion very well from the distance, but they could see a great flurry of movement, and they could hear raised voices. The three teenagers shared a brief, wide-eyed look, and then sprinted towards the cozy garden home a bit apprehensively.

Inside, it was absolute chaos.

An unfamiliar blonde who looked to be in her mid-twenties was tied up on the floor. She struggled against her bonds and indicated to the newcomers to help her. The blow-ins, however, did not hear or see her. They were much too enraptured by the scene at hand.

"You cheating... _cunt_!" A short, willowy navy-haired girl yelled at a similarly built brunette as the former grabbed the latter by her collar and slammed her against the wall of the pavilion. "How fucking _dare _you show up with _him?" _

Satsuki Momoi and Aida Riko shared a bewildered glance.

The brunette retaliated by pulling at her opponent's navy hair viciously. "I did not _cheat_! Tarou-kun didn't feel anything about you, you jealous, ugly _hag_!" She clawed at her face angrily until the other girl let her go. She fell to the floor in a heap before getting up and throwing a hard punch at the navy-haired girl, who blocked and retaliated similarly.

"For fuck's sake, his name is _Shintarou_, you asshole!"

"_You're _an asshole!"

"FUCK YOU, YOU BITCH!"

An wrinkled old man teetering past the pavilion paused nervously and gulped, nearly getting a heart attack at their vicious language.

With a surprised squeal, Aida Riko stepped out of the way quickly as the brunette flew her way in an attempt to dodge an assault by the navy-haired girl. Said navy-haired girl lunged almost immediately, and the two battling girls crashed outside the pavilion, onto the grass.

"Someone should go stop them before they accidentally kill someone."

For the first time, Aida Riko noticed the other two occupants of the meeting; a short, timid, bespectacled girl dressed in a Yosen uniform with an ebony bob who sat next to a tall, calm girl with blonde curls and a Shutoku uniform. The former was wide-eyed as she observed the unfolding fight, and the latter was leafing through a book (_Salvation of a Saint_), undisturbed. She was the one who spoke.

Finally freed from all distractions, Satsuki Momoi noticed the poor woman on the tiled floor of the pavilion. She let out a worried cry and rushed towards her immediately, meaning to untie her. The ropes were tighter than she thought, and she had quite a time struggling with them.

Haruka raised her eyebrows, and asked the two sitting on the far bench. "Exactly what happened?"

The girl with the bob opened her mouth, blushed red furiously, and then shut it again. If Haruka was shy, then this girl was an ultimately recessive antisocial beetle. Feeling it necessary, the blonde who still did not look up from her book, replied. "Get used to it."

Riko blinked. If the atmosphere between the girls had been ready to ignite before they arrived, it was going up in flames now. **_  
_**

_Why on Earth did I agree to do this?_

* * *

**Earlier**

_(Kaoru)_

Kaoru Hanamachi was very punctual. She was always on time: never early, never late. The afternoon of June 21st did not provide to be an exception. And so, at precisely 5 pm, as she entered the pavilion at Yoyogi Park in Shibuya, Tokyo, where they were to have the meeting about the spring festival, she expected to be the first one there.

Unfortunately, she was wrong.

The pavilion was western-styled. The walls were tiled neatly, and a small, wooden desk stood in the middle of the small room. It was open onto two sides; A bench ran along the arced walls of the circular building, and the ceiling was domed, lit neatly and modestly by a bulb in the center. The place would have been pleasant, if it hadn't already been occupied.

"Hanamachi! You look terrible, as usual." A high, ringing voice replied in a falsely sweet voice. "Kumiko here-" Kikuchi Rina indicated to a terrified blonde sitting on a bench, clutching some files "-and I were discussing about how this meeting needs more people like me and less idiots like you."

"It's lovely to see you too, Kikuchi." She muttered expressionlessly before bowing to the unfamiliar, flaxen-haired woman. "Nice to meet you," she said automatically, "My name is Hanamachi Kaoru."

Here, her glance flickered towards the navy-haired girl in the Yosen uniform before replying. "I'm sorry if _this _idiot has proved to be an inconvenience." The arrogant teen sitting directly in front of the older blonde smirked, but did not say anything.

The bewildered woman blinked, and managed to stutter. "I-It's not a problem." She nervously smoothed out her blazer and adjusted her glasses. Kaoru noted that she was tall, curvy, and really quite pretty. She seemed somewhat familiar.

"Hi. My name is Kise Kumiko-" Oh, yeah, she _did _resemble Kise Ryouta (a famous basketball player who played for Teiko, a neighboring school when they were in Junior High at Hibiya, and a close friend of Raiha's) -"and I'm going to be your adviser for the festival. I will help moderate the meetings, and provide any financial assistance you all might need." She provided a stunning smile, "Please treat me as your equal."

Rina replied before Kaoru could, "Sure, _cuntbag._"

_For the love of God... _

Realizing that this would inevitably lead to something troublesome like a fight, Kaoru took a seat next to Rina and pulled out the book she had been reading from her bag. She wanted to know more about who poisoned Yoshitaka by lacing his tea with arsenic. She brushed away some stray curls that fell onto her face and flipped open the book neatly, meaning to read it throughout the entire meeting.

"There's no need for that kind of language." Kumiko said in shock.

"Hey, you asked me to treat you as equally as these shitheads. " she indicated to Kaoru, who went on reading dispassionately.

"Girls your age shouldn't speak like that!"

"Whatever, _cuntbag." _

"Kikuchi Rina, I expect you to behave." The older blonde adjusted her glasses again, frowning at her grimly. "It won't do for you to act like _that_."

"Of course, _cuntbag._"

"Will you please stop saying that word?"

Hanamachi Kaoru lifted her nose from her book long enough to glance at the other occupants. She noticed another person - dressed in the Yosen uniform with the black blazer, black skirt and red tie like Rina - enter the pavilion apprehensively. Though Kaoru did not know it, this person's name was Iwamura Sen; someone from a really poor district in Sanjo who transferred to Yosen with the help of a scholarship. Her uniform was tailored much too loosely, giving the impression of it being secondhand. Her black hair was cut into a messy bob, and the lenses of her simple, green-framed glasses were dirty and scratched. Her skin was pale and plain; she wore no make-up.

"Oh, _hello _there, Sen." Rina turned her claws onto the new arrivals with a dangerous smirk. "Here to _babysit _me?"

The new arrival flushed red, flustered. "I-I'm sorry for offending you, Kikuchi-san," she gave a hasty bow before scurrying off to sit a seat away from Kaoru, who did not bother to look up, "I will not disturb you at all."

"Good girl." Rina smirked triumphantly, crossing her legs and leaning back against the wall arrogantly.

Kumiko's jaw dropped. "You're not serious, are you?" She glanced at each of the highschoolers sitting in front of her; The willowy, petite, navy-haired, arrogant and stubborn Rina; The indifferent, apathetic, calm, tall and Blonde Kaoru; The shy, red-faced, tiny, disorganized and black-haired Sen. She had never met three individuals so different.

"What're you looking at, _cuntbag_?"

Kumiko sighed.

Before either female could reply, a giggling, bubblegum voice filled the air. Kaoru immediately recognized the voice, and relished the last few seconds of peace while she could.

"Tarou-kun, come on!" The unseen entity was saying. Her voice was getting louder as she made her way towards the pavilion. "One more kiss?"

Rina's arrogant smirk fell from her face. Her eyes narrowed into slits, so that you could barely see her dark blue eyes, and her expression darkened considerably. Kumiko glanced at her curiously.

A male voice replied expressionlessly. "Raiha, you're going to be late, nanodayo."

"But, _Tarou_-kun..."

Two figures appeared at the northern opening of the pavilion. A slender, willowy brunette clung onto a tall, green-haired boy, a huge smile on her pretty face. Without bothering to look at the occupants of the building, Raiha kissed Midorima Shintarou softly on the cheek and bid him goodbye. Shintarou raised a hand in farewell before walking away.

_Git_. Kaoru thought as she rolled her eyes at the retreating green-haired teen, but gave an affectionate smile at the brunette who entered the pavilion with a happy, satisfied grin. Kumiko made to address the newcomer, but she was cut short by the livid teen sitting in front of her before Raiha could even take a seat. Raiha paused in her tracks like a deer caught in headlights when she realized that Rina was in the room.

"Welcome, _whore_."

Out of the corner of her eye, Kaoru saw Sen give her a nervous glance. Kumiko shifted in her seat uncomfortably.

"Now, Rina-"

"Save it for later, _cuntbag_." Rina blew off the older blonde acidly, eying the brunette with great dislike.

"Nice of you to show your disgusting face, you lying bitch." She said again, this time addressing Raiha, who sat down next to Kumiko with a satisfied smile on her face. Kaoru realized that Raiha's plan was to disregard the furious navy-haired freshman altogether.

She smiled sweetly at Kaoru, Kumiko and Sen. "Hello, Kaoru, Kumiko-san!" She exclaimed cheerfully (the older of the two blondes looked extremely relieved to find a familiar face). She nodded at Sen, who flinched. "What's your name?"

"Rai-chan!" Kumiko grinned.

"Hey, Raiha." Kaoru smiled at her again - Sen hesitated, not knowing what to do. Kaoru gave a disgusted look at Rina. The poor girl was terrified of her.

As she returned to her book, Rina stood up furiously, turning over the table in the middle. Ignoring Kumiko's ineffective protests, she walked over to Raiha and stopped in front of her. Not minding this in the least, the brunette patiently turned her attention to Kumiko.

"There aren't many of us coming, right?"

Slightly startled, Kumiko shook her head. "N-No.. Three more, I think."

Rina raised her head back and slapped Raiha sharply across the cheek, fuming. Sen yelped, and Kumiko stood up from her seat, meaning to restrain her. "Rina! Don't touch her!"

Kaoru eyed the intervening blonde warily. "You're going to get hurt, Kumiko-san." She cautioned. Raiha was old enough to handle her own problems. There was no need for Kaoru to butt in.

Kise Kumiko ignored Kaoru and gripped the livid teen by her shoulders, who in turn swatted her off as if she was nothing more than a fly. She fell to the floor in a heap.

"Told you so." Kaoru muttered.

"What's your _problem_?" Raiha asked in incredulity, rubbing her sore cheek.

In reply, Rina grabbed a fistful of Raiha's chestnut waves and slammed her head against the tile wall none too gently. She yelped in pain and smacked her hand away. Sen jumped, and Kaoru flickered her brown eyes towards Raiha to make sure she wasn't bleeding. She returned to her book.

Kise Kumiko scrambled up from the floor and smoothed out her blazer. Adjusting her glases, she walked over to Rina sternly and gripped her by the arm. "Rina, I'm going to have to ask you to leave-"

Rina wheedled out of her grip easily and glared at the brunette, who had also stood up, equally angry. "You fucking liar!" She swore. "You were supposed to be my friend!"

The older, bespectacled blonde was still trying to minimize impeding disaster. "Now, girls, we can solve this diplomatically-"

Raiha crossed her arms across her chest, ignoring her futile attempts. "I told you the truth! _You _were the one who was too stubborn to accept the fact that Tarou-kun didn't have feelings for you-"

"HIS NAME IS _SHINTAROU_!"

"_Girls-" _

"I'LL CALL HIM WHATEVER I WANT!"

Rina's eyes flashed angrily, her expression showing all the hurt she felt. "Did you even bother to tell him how I felt!?"

Here, Raiha hesitated. "It wouldn't have made a difference-"

"Oh, and you bouncing about on his cock certainly would-"

"_GIRLS, REALLY_-"

"So what, Rina?" Raiha shot back. "He wanted me more than you, obviously-"

"IT DOESN'T MATTER, RAIHA!" Rina yelled threateningly. She took a step towards the brunette, who, in turn, retreated a few steps back. "You were supposed to be my friend!

"You told me you you'd _talk to him about me_, and then you turned around and bit me in the back!" At the heat of their argument, Rina noticed an odd mark on Raiha's neck. "What's that on your neck, slut?"

Despite the situation, Raiha blushed and covered her neck with her hair. "I-It's none of your business!"

But Rina had already seen it, and she was furious beyond reason. "Is that... a _hickey_?" She whispered dangerously.

And then all hell broke loose.

* * *

_(Haruka)_

"Then she somehow managed to tie me up, and... yeah." The blonde moderator - Kise Kumiko - finished recounting the tale shakily after Momoi had (with great difficulty) unwound the ropes around her. "Obviously we need to meet up sometime again, later. Perhaps the same time tomorrow?"

The girl with dishwater blonde hair - the one with her nose in the book; Kaoru replied curtly. "With those two? You should wait a _year_ for them to cool off."

The other girls that attended the meeting sat around the hastily upturned table on the benches attached to the two arced walls, trying to figure out what to do next. Haruka raised an eyebrow and checked her watch during the silence. _6.45 pm. _Only a few minutes to sunset. She had to remember to get back home by 7.30 pm to drop off her little brother Haruto at their cousin's place.

The sky was an ombre of colors; starting from a deep, watery blue to the east and ending in hues of red and orange to the west. Outside the pavilion, female voices could still be heard shrieking, followed by the sound of flesh hitting flesh.

Kumiko looked outside nervously. "Someone really needs to speak some sense into them."

_"APOLOGIZE, YOU WHORE!" _

_"GOD DAMN YOU RINA, I'LL DO WHATEVER I WANT TO DO!" _

Hanamachi Kaoru didn't look up, but replied. "You're more than welcome to try." Kumiko winced at the thought.

"Yeah, I'd rather keep my anatomy intact." Haruka agreed quietly.

Another silence passed through the room.

_"GET BACK HERE!" _

"Don't_ TOUCH me, you jealous slut!" _

_"Oh, now _I'm _the slut?!" _

The only second-year present in the room - Aida Riko, wearing a Seirin uniform, like her - ran a hand through her pixie brown cut. "We'll never get anything done at this rate. I mean, we can't just _not _have the festival, right?"

"We can, actually." Kaoru cut in dryly.

They all ignored her, and Momoi replied to Riko enthusiastically. "Yeah, I mean, obviously you guys-" here, she looked at Kumiko, who still stared outside, forehead creased with worry "-had high hopes about this festival. We shouldn't let this go to waste."

"That's right." Haruka replied assent, tucking a loose strand of her green-tinted dark hair behind her ear. Seinin Haruka did not very much care about the spring festival - or any festival, for that matter - but if she managed to pull this off, it would certainly look really good on her CV.

"How about we get someone to talk to them?" The pinkette spoke up again. "Kaoru, aren't you friends with them?"

Hanamachi Kaoru finally snapped her book shut and tucked it neatly inside her book bag. "Kikuchi isn't my friend. Raiha will behave so long as _she_ does."

Momoi frowned, and then turned to the shy, tiny and bespectacled girl with the messy black bob - Iwamura Sen - who promptly turned a furious shade of red. "How about you, Sen?" She asked gently. "Isn't Rina in your class? Why don't you talk to her?"

"Momoi, you're not blind, are you?" Kumiko said at the same time Kaoru muttered, "_There's_ a battle lost before it even began."

Momoi stared expectantly at the ebony-haired girl, who froze and opened her mouth to reply. Haruka figured she must have meant to explain hastily that she couldn't do it, but the only sound that came out was, "_Eeeeeeeeep." _

Momoi's frown deepened.

"Maybe Raiha should apologize. I mean, it seems to me as if she betrayed Rina's trust somehow." Riko offered.

"Well, yeah," Kaoru shot back, "but I don't think Raiha has to do everything the way Rina says. They _both _had feelings for Midorima Shintarou, and they both knew it well, too."

"Friends have certain obligations, Kaoru."

"We didn't sign up to be her slave, okay?"

A short silence followed this statement.

"Well," Haruka finally said, "we need to do _something._ We can't just let this be."

Kumiko tied her straight, flaxen hair up into a ponytail. "Well, I'd suggest we ask Yosen to send someone else in replacement of Rina but..." she trailed off uncertainly.

"She'd probably slaughter all of us in our sleep in we did that." Kaoru finished dismally.

Another silence. The colors in the sky were fading into a deep indigo, now. It seemed like things were quieting down outside. From the sound of things, it seemed like the two beaten and bruised girls were finally heading home.

_"Get lost, Rina!" _

_"I'M GLAD I WON'T SEE YOUR FACE AGAIN, BITCH!" _

"U-um," Sen spoke up suddenly, "I-I have an idea."

The other females turned their attention towards her, and the short girl blushed. "U-Um, I think we could... y-you know... ask Kikuchi-san nicely.. t-to behave."

"And you honestly think _that_ is going to work?" Kaoru cut in sarcastically, again.

Though impossible, the girl blushed an even deeper red. "W-well, did you ever... you know... try it?"

A thoughtful silence rippled across the room as the remaining girls pondered her words. Haruka thought about it. They never did actually consider asking her nicely. Though Kikuchi Rina was a violent, angry sort of... person, she was still a person nonetheless.

"It can't hurt to try." Kumiko accepted finally.

"I still don't think it's going to work."

"Shut up, Kaoru, I don't think you'll agree to _any_ idea." Riko gave her a look.

"I'm just being realistic here."

Momoi glanced at Haruka. The two friends shared a brief look, and Haruka was reminded of their days back in Teiko when they used to listen to the Generation of Miracles fight like this all the time.

"Asking nicely _does _work." Haruka agreed thoughtfully.

They agreed on this, and all the females in the pavilion gathered their belongings and stood up to leave. This was when Momoi jumped suddenly, as if she remembered something.

"Oh yeah, do any of you know what happened to Mamoru Enko?"

Riko wrinkled her nose. "Who?"

"There's a Mamoru _Byakuya_ in my class," Haruka offered, "but no Mamoru Enko."

The pinkette frowned again. "She was supposed to come here, too. She was supposed to come to the meeting along with me, from Touou... well, never mind."

And so, the girls departed under the agreement that they were to have the same meeting tomorrow. Iwamura Sen looked the most miserable from the entire lot, as she was the one who had been picked to relay the message to Kikuchi Rina. A few of the girls stayed back to convince her it would all end up okay.

Haruka, however, was anxious to rush back home. Her mother would be worrying.

* * *

**April 15th, 2013**

_(Kagami) _

Kagami Taiga never liked dusk. Dusk meant night was falling, and night meant rest. Rest was necessary for his body to function properly, he knew, but rest was still a waste of time. So yes, he thought as he gazed up at the darkening sky, he didn't, and never would, like dusk.

He yawned, running a hand through his short auburn hair. Needing rest made him feel weak. And yet, rest was essential for the Interhigh Preliminaries next month. So thinking, he tucked his hands into the pockets of his sweatpants and headed home.

The sky grew gradually darker until it was a shade of indigo velvet that would have glittered with the brilliance of a million stars if it weren't for the light from the city. Kagami walked down the sidewalk lazily, listening to the everyday noise of vehicles passing on the street. Japan was different from America; it was a lot busier. And as he passed the brightly lit stores, he noted that it was certainly more colorful, as well.

The people were different, too. That Tetsuya character was definitely odd, with his unusually light eyes and cerulean hair. The rest of his new team at Seirin High were pretty weird as well, but a part of his mind pointed out that he himself stood out, too, with his unusual eyes and threatening aura.

He jumped out of his reverie when a basketball hit the toe of his converse. He blinked, wondering where it could have come from. And then he looked to his left and realized he was standing next to a street court.

Without taking much notice of its occupants, he turned back to the basketball. Almost immediately, a short, stocky boy with jet-black hair shot out of the court and ran towards him. He was slightly tanned, and at least a foot shorter than Kagami was. The boy picked up the ball at his feet and stood up, smiling. Kagami noted that his jet-black eyes were every bit as dark as his hair. He was slightly familiar, but the auburn-haired giant was still surprised when the short boy greeted him in a familiar tone, grinning. "Hello, Kagami-kun."

Kagami looked down at him – really, he was just as short as Tetsuya – and raised an eyebrow. "I know you… sir?" He asked him, making an effort to be polite. Stupid Kuroko Tetsuya, he was rubbing off on him.

He expected the boy to be offended, but instead he laughed good-naturedly and turned back after saying, "I'm in your class." With his, he ran down the sidewalk and back into the court.

_He's in my class? _Kagami stared after him in surprise. _I wonder why he didn't turn out for team tryouts. _Feeling curious, he followed after him onto the rough cement of the court, deciding to watch from the sidelines.

He was playing against a girl. Kagami found this odd, but he didn't question it. Perhaps she was a very boyish girl. A part of him wondered whether she was his girlfriend, but he dismissed the thought quickly, and instead observed the pair as they played one-on-one.

The first thing he noticed about the girl in question was her sickly pale skin. It was paper white, and at first glance, she seemed almost transparent. _Japan is so weird. _

Then his eyes went to her straight, fiery hair – so bright that it was almost orange. It was pulled back with a hair band and tied up into a bun at the nape of her neck so that it would stand out of the way of her playing. He smirked inwardly. It was even brighter than his hair. _  
_

Almost as if she felt his eyes on her, the fiery-haired girl glanced back at him. Kagami noted that she had a fire in her orange eyes, a sort of determination that he liked, even though she glared at him icily. She had a slight spread of freckles on her cheeks, which were flushed with overexertion. Despite her fierce expression, he couldn't help but appreciate how pretty she looked. He grinned at her, and she narrowed her eyes at him as she received the ball from her dark-haired companion.

"Come on, Enko!" Said companion grinned at her before assuming the defense position in front of her. Carrot-top stared back grimly before settling into the offensive position, ready to drive. _So her name is Enko._

Kagami turned his attention to the tanned boy in front of her. _Mamoru Byakuya, _he remembered his name, finally, _he **is **in my class. He sits in front of me. _No wonder he didn't recognize him at first sight. Kagami Taiga spent most of his time sleeping during class.

As he watched, Enko did a weak shooting fake – it was obvious she didn't have much skill – before driving past Byakuya with surprising speed. She got across the lane in two dribbles, but she missed the layup. She was definitely not a professional player.

Her companion, however, jumped up and received the rebound with amazing finesse. But as he dribbled back to the three-point-line, Kagami noticed his movements were a bit sluggish. He was about four times slower than the girl he was playing against.

What Enko lacked in skill, she made up for in momentum. Before Byakuya had stabilized in his position as offense, the orange-haired girl stole the ball from him and circled around him once before driving back towards the shoot. She did a very weak jump shot, but this time, she scored.

Kagami expected Byakuya to be offended but instead he laughed brightly and ran to receive the ball. "You're way too fast, Enko." He passed the ball to her. The girl didn't reply nor react to his statement, but she caught the ball and turned to glare at Kagami.

"What are you doing here?" She rested the basketball on her hip. "Who are you?"

Kagami didn't answer. Instead, he reached out his hand for the ball. After narrowing her eyes suspiciously, the amber-eyed girl threw the ball to him in a swift, but messy, chest pass. "I thought this was a public court." He caught and then balanced and twirled the ball on top of his index finger.

The girl didn't reply to this, but instead lifted her chin up arrogantly. Kagami found himself smirking. "Kagami Taiga." He reached out his hand, as if expecting her to take it. "Pleased to make your acquaintance."

* * *

**Presently (21st June 2013)**

_(Kagami)_

A month and a half had passed since then, but Kagami's relationship with the fiery-haired girl from Touou hadn't improved in the slightest. However, the tall teen had since sprouted a budding friendship with her very flamboyant brother; Mamoru Byakuya. Their apartment stood in the building down the street from where Kagami lived, and so he often visited their house after practice.

"Mamoru," he grinned as soon as he entered their loft. The short, dark-haired boy grinned and gave him a fist bump as soon as he saw him.

"Kagami-kun!" The tanned, dark-haired boy smiled enthusiastically as he admitted Kagami Taiga into their simple, Japanese-styled apartment. Byakuya and Enko - a pair of siblings orphaned at birth - had spent their earlier years in an orphanage, but since Junior High had lived in a small, single-room apartment that had been gifted to them by the landlord.

Either Enko was more domestic and skilled at cooking than anybody would have thought or Byakuya really didn't make any messes at all, because the entire place was always clean and polished. The cream walls were painted neatly, albeit simply, and the furniture was always smooth and glistening. The tatami mats were never untidy, and the sofa which Byakuya slept in was always made neatly. He had never had the opportunity to enter Enko's room, but he imagined it would be neat as well.

The redhead in question glared at him woefully as soon as he entered. "Enko," Kagami greeted with a smirk as he stepped out of his shoes and onto the supple mats. He ruffled the hair on top of her head.

"I'll talk to you later, onii." She told her brother curtly as she smacked his hand lff, standing up as Kagami walked over to sit beside her on the sofa where Byakuya slept. "Get out of here soon, Bakagami." Enko glared at him once more before slamming the door to her room behind her.

Unfazed, Kagami grinned. Irritating Enko was always very, _very _enjoyable.

After sliding the door shut, Mamoru Byakuya plopped onto the sofa next to Kagami.

"_So, _Kagami-kun," he grinned suggestively, waggling his eyebrows,"what brings you here? Wanted to see anybody special?"

"I was bored at home," Kagami punched his shoulder playfully, knowing he was teasing him about Enko, "I don't like your sister, okay, man?"

"_Right_."

Byakuya smirked, but let the matter drop. _For now._

_"_Oh yeah, I thought you said Enko was going to go to some meeting tonight?" Kagami asked curiously. "Why'd she cancel?"

"She threw a fit and insisted she didn't want to go."

"_Of _course."

The two friends sat in silence for a while as Kagami pondered the happenings of the last tournament, and then Byakuya spoke up. "Do you know why she's so mistrustful of you?"

"Because I look like a wild animal?"

Byakuya giggled a bit, and then stuck his tongue out. "No, _Bakagami." _

A muscle in Kagami's forehead twitched and then he flicked Byakuya on the forehead lightly. "Don't call me that."

"Yes. Because only Enko's allowed to call you that." He replied cheekily.

"Get to the point, Mamoru."

Byakuya laughed at him once more, pointing a finger, but then got pretty serious. "It's because guys like you have always bullied me before."

Kagami blinked, and then gave a concerned look towards Byakuya.

"I'm not accidentally bullying you, am I, Byakuya...san?" He asked as gently as he could.

Byakuya bit down on his lower lip before erupting in a typhoon of laughter. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA, _Oh, _Kagami-kun, you should have seen your face!"

"K-_KONOYAROU! _I SWEAR I'LL KILL YOU!"

Byakuya calmed down, but only a bit. "He... he... I'm serious though," he said in between giggles.

"Yes, very." Kagami agreed sarcastically, getting up to go shoot a few hoops before turning into bed. He knew that Byakuya would follow him if he left without giving a satisfactory reply.

"No, I'm serious." Byakuya said seriously, stopping his laughter. He got up to go chase after the several feet taller giant. "_OI! KAGAMI-KUN! I wasn't_ kidding!"He said, slamming the door shut behind him.

"_Right, right."_

_"I'm SERIOUS!" _

Their fading voices echoed into the dark, twinkling night sky as both teens headed towards the street court a block away.

* * *

(_Aomine) _

He was going crazy. He was sure of it, now.

Aomine Daiki leaned against the wall of the alleyway, and put the cigarette to his lips. After watching his previous exhalation swirl up into the sky and disappear within the twinkle of the stars, he exhaled again.

He saw her just a few minutes ago as she walked back home, her long pink hair swaying behind her back, her wide pink eyes genuine with concern.

"Dai-chan!" Of course she would use that nickname. Aomine loved how the syllables of his name rolled off her tongue, making even that ridiculously childish nickname sound sexy.

"What are you doing, still outside? You need to rest!" She had said, brushing those soft, milky fingertips down his arm in rebuke. How hard Aomine had to resist, to show her how he felt, to run his hands along her milky skin...

He exhaled again.

Yes, he was definitely going crazy. Satsuki Momoi had feelings for nobody but Kuroko - Aomine most definitely wouldn't make the list. Ever.

Besides, it wasn't feelings that he wanted... it wasn't.

Was it?

"You're going to end up slower than me if you don't stop that habit, Aominecchi."

Aomine opened his eyes to find amber ones staring back at him as Kise Ryouta leaned across the wall opposite him. He had a knowing smirk on his face, as if he knew exactly what was bothering Aomine Daiki.

It pissed him off.

"You're still a hundred light years too slow to even dream, Kise."

Kise plucked the cigarette neatly out of his hands and dropped it before stepping on the butt. "Guess I'm not _too _slow_." _

"I paid for that cig with my lunch money."

"Your problem, then."

"Hn."

Kise observed his friend. He was tanned for a Japanese, and had blue-black hair. He was wearing a shirt and jeans, and when their eyes met, Kise thought he understood the melancholy within them.

(He didn't. He wasn't even close.)

Kise Ryouta had a crush on a particular girl. He was the epitome of high school fantasy - an athletic, smart, cute model - and though he had the chance, girls had never come across to him as important.

Not until Junior High, when he first met Inoue Raiha.

Aomine Daiki, on the other hand, was in love.

He did not know it, though. He was fine with that.

(But not really.)

* * *

_(Rina)_

Kikuchi Rina had no friends.

She established this fact as she walked home that night with a bruised cheek and an ache in her heart. Her house was a bit far away from the main city, and so it longer for her to walk back than it did for the others.

Nearing the outskirts of Tokyo City, she paused and texted the driver to come pick her up. Though it was still early out, nary a person walked about the rural Tokyo area, The navy-haired girl leaned against a streetlamp nervously, wondering how long her chauffeur was going to take.

She closed her eyes, trying not to think about the continuous ache in her chest.

She had always known Midorima Shintarou didn't like her. At the same time, she had known Raiha had feelings for him. She had known, yet had asked her to talk to him about her anyway. She had asked her under the assumption that Midorima Shintarou would never give the daughter of a lowly business company the time of day, when he had a chance with the great Kikuchi Rina, heiress to a rich, millenium old family of merchants.

_Punishment for my own arrogance, _she thought bitterly, looking up at the silver studded sky. To the East, the glow of uptown Tokyo lit up the moonless night.

She thought of Midorima Shintarou, with his lovely green hair and deep, deep green eyes. She thought of his strong hands. She thought of the smooth curve of his lips; of how it would feel to press hers against his. She couldn't help but sigh.

Kikuchi Rina thought she was in love, and it was just about the only thing she appreciated in this world. _  
_

(For now.)

* * *

_(Haruka)_

_"_Ne, onee-chan?"

She knew the question was coming. It was inevitable.

"Is okaa-san going to leave us?"

Seinen Haruto was only five when Mr. Seinen left their family. He was unaware of the problems that had lead to it, unaware of the trauma that befell Haruka during those days. Now seven and nearing eight (The sixth of September), little Haruto - very much alike to Haruka in demeanor and appearance - still understood very little about divorce.

He understood very little about the drinking spell that had fallen upon their mother, about her slurred speech, about why he had to sleep at an aunt's place while Haruka calmed their mother down.

Haruto knew very little, yet his observant eyes had realized that something about their mother had changed. Haruka's heart fell. No, her mother was not going to leave them, physically speaking.

Mentally speaking, she was already gone.

"Of course not. Don't be stupid."

She gave him a hug and a kiss. "Have fun, Haruto-kun."

"I love you, Haruka-nee."

"And I you, Haruto."

Seinen Haruto was the only one Haruka truly loved. And it stayed that way for a long time.

(And then it changed. Drastically.)

* * *

Pain came in many different types. There were physical pains and mental pains. The latter and former could again further be classified into several categories. One of these categories contained the word "Melancholy." Definition; a feeling of pensive sadness, typically with no obvious cause.

Another word was "Agony." Definition; extreme physical or mental suffering.

There was a difference between agony and melancholy. They had the same basis meaning, but then again, both words had an incredible difference. Many of these teens had a melancholic air about them, but agony was something different.

Melancholy was what Kuroko Tetsuya emanated when he talked and walked.

Agony was what Aomine Daiki felt, every time Satsuki Momoi spoke the words, "I love Tetsu-kun."

* * *

**A/N: **Does my fic suck very bad? T_T Pleeease review! I'll update soon.

PS. I don't own Kuroko no Basuke.

Or the wondergirls. Teehee!


	4. Lucky

**10.00 pm **

_(Sen, 22nd June 2013) _

Iwamura Sen lived in a one-room dorm (provided by MEXT as part of her scholarship) not too far from the Yosen High building in Akita, about 400 miles and a 4 hour train ride away from Tokyo. This being the case, Yosen High let Iwamura Sen and Kikuchi Rina depart school early one day, since both girls were required to attend a meeting at precisely 5 pm; on June 21st, 2014. Needless to say, the meeting had ended on an absolutely disastrous note, but to be honest, it was only the tip of the iceberg for fifteen-year-old Iwamura Sen.

She awoke late the next morning (a Saturday) after a long, long day of traveling back and forth.

"Maa," she mumbled sleepily, swinging her short legs of her modest, single-bunked bed with a yawn. "What a day."

It was 10am; very late by her standards, and so she quickly brushed her teeth and dressed before sitting down by her dining table with a book, a few biscuits and a cup of milk tea.

The book fell open to her last diary entry; filled in at precisely 11.50 pm on June 21st, 2013; right before she fell to bed.

_Dear Sakura-oneesan, _

(This was certainly an odd way to begin a diary entry... but then again, it wasn't really a diary, was it?)

_I had the worst day ever! I knew things were going bad when the school decided to send me off to a meeting with _Kikuchi-san _of all people, but today absolutely sucked! It began no sooner than I had stepped into the school compound that very morning; to be greeted by the usual taunts. _

* * *

_(June 21st 2013, Sen)_

The whispers weren't what hurt her the most.

_"I heard she was a crack whore MEXT brought in to rehabilitate.."_

_"I heard her parents were drug addicts who lived in the red-light district.."_

_"Do you _know _how poor that girl is? Apparently she had to sell a kidney to get accepted into Yosen..."_

No, she was most definitely not a crack whore. Her parents were nice, elderly folk who lived several prefectures away in a broken-down old hut at the very edge of Sanjo. And she _certainly _didn't have to sell a kidney to get into Yosen; she worked hard, like everyone else.

But the whispers never stopped; and several months passed without anybody ever saying anything to her face.

This all changed when the school management assigned her to assist Rina to run some Spring Festival that was to be held almost a year later.

Too bad it changed for the worse.

"Hey, _wimp_!"

Sen froze as soon as she heard her voice. It was a bright, sunny day (like usual) but the sun seemed to hide behind the non-existent clouds. A day that started with those two words _always_ turned out bad. She paused on the cement compound tentatively, afraid to look back. She clutched her text books to her chest and took a deep breath, awaiting her doom.

Kikuchi Rina ran up to the shorter, skinner girl, her dark blue hair swinging behind her. Sen's messy black-haired bob rustled with a passing breeze. She turned around just as the prettier, indimidating girl stopped to a halt just a step away from her.

"Y-Yes, Kikuchi-san?"

She adjusted her well-tailored uniform; in contrast, Sen's loose sack of a blazer just barely stayed put on her petite little body. Sen swallowed in horrible anticipation at the new volley of threats/insults Rina was going to throw at her.

"You're coming, aren't ya?" She asked, smirking.

Sen bit her lip, trying not to let out a sigh of relief. "U-Um, yes, Kikuchi-san." She had to refrain from turning on her heel and running away at the speed of light.

Rina's smirk widened. "Just making sure, _wimp_."

Sen couldn't hold in her relieved sigh. She gave a (tiny) smile and bowed before turning on her heel and walking away as fast as she could manage.

She couldn't go as fast as she hoped, though. Changing her mind about being nice to her, the much faster Rina skirted around her fast steps neatly - with a light, easy laugh - and stuck her foot out towards Sen.

The poor, dark-haired girl was going too fast to stop her movements suddenly. She tripped over Rina's leg and fell onto the cement-cased ground with a painful thud, her textbooks flying everywhere. Along with the sharp pain that shot up from her knee (it was most definitely scraped), tears filled her eyes.

"You fell, wimp?" Rina laughed meanly as Sen struggled to get up; she spotted drops of blood on the floor. Her knee was scraped thinly. Tears streaked down her cheeks and she wiped them away hurriedly.

"_Wimp_." Rina snorted again; some of the bystanders that had circled around the pair to watch them sniggered at her misfortune. Sen held in a fresh wave of tears and got to her knees shakily, not meeting anybody's eyes. She knelt down and picked up the textbooks on the floor before trying to walk away. Her knee wasn't _so_ bad. She could walk.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that the navy-haired girl made to say something. But before any of that happened, a tall, dark, and handsome teenager made his way through the crowd and walked towards the pair in the middle. He had a mole under his right eye, and gained quite a few stares from female students. _Himuro Tatsuya, _Sen remembered, _he's in my class. _

"Kikuchi-san, come on," the new arrival said gently, "let her be."

Rina raised an eyebrow (Sen noted she was blushing just a little), but did not say anything. She sighed, rolled her eyes and walked away from the scene. Along with the rest of the girls in the school compound, Sen observed the handsome freshman's perfectly angled face, dark, brooding eyes, and even _she _had to note that he was just as handsome as any idol.

Then, to the blushing bob-haired teen's shock and chagrin, the handsome boy turned to her. She froze, turning a lovely shade of crimson.

"What's your name?" He asked softly, as he would a child.

Sen swallowed. "U-um," she couldn't help but notice the glares of _all _the girls surrounding her (she was _so _dead), "S-Sen. Iwamura Sen." She stammered quietly. Her face was feeling even hotter than usual; she looked down to avoid the good-looking boy's eyes.

To her horror, Himuro Tatsuya stepped closer. "You're bleeding," he noted, "we better get you to the health room."

"U-um, n-n-no, i-it's okay, H-Himuro-san," she said feverishly, taking a step back (the girls around her were probably plotting her murder at that moment).

Her dread intensified when Tatsuya grabbed her hand suddenly. "No, I insist." He said politely, unaware that all the female students in the school were glaring at Sen with hatred so intense that she could practically _feel _herself spontaneously combusting from all the negative energy. She gulped, but could not summon enough courage to resist. All she could do was whimper in protest while she let herself be dragged from the compound towards the school health room.

While she walked, she wasn't thinking about how warm and strong Himuro Tatsuya's hands were. She wasn't thinking about how his actions were so chivalrous that it would have made any girl's heart melt. She wasn't even thinking about how lucky she was to be saved from Kikuchi Rina's bullying by the most popular, good-looking boy in the whole school (There was a rumor that he even got a love letter from the _cleaning lady_).

No. All Iwamura Sen could think about was what would happen to the pizza she had ordered for later that night, when she died a sad, agonizing death (killed by a pair of fangirls) before she could reach home.

Luck was not on her side today.

* * *

After dropping her off at the health room, Himuro told her to take care of herself (Sen managed to articulate a weak thank you in response) before leaving to class. The nurse there attended her knee with a slight glare, and Sen thought she had dabbed on the ointment needed for her leg just a bit too roughly. (It was just hilarious how fast rumors travel through this school ((Rumors here were always fast and twisted; the nurse probably heard Tatsuya and Sen had a torrid love affair))). She supposed that sort of behavior was to be expected from the female population of the entire Akita _prefecture _from that day onward for a long, _long_ time.

Oh yes. She was definitely doomed.

After her trip to the nurse, she hurriedly walked back to her classroom just barely in time for Kanako-sensei's class (Biology) to begin.

"S-Sumimasen," she murmured quietly, feeling the glares of all the girls in her freshmen class on her back.

"You're very nearly late, Iwamura," the middle-aged teacher nodded curtly (as of her nature) and nodded to her briefly, "take your seat."

Sen bowed lightly before hurrying past everybody to the very corner of the class where she sat, in the last row with the junkies and the ones who didn't care about studying at all. To her immediate left sat an obese girl named Kanagawa Hanabi with black hair a bad case of acne, who usually got busted for eating in class. Next to her sat two twin brothers; Inuzuka Taichi and Toriko, each of whom always had a suspicious needle and a bag of "leaves" in their coat pockets. Then, farthest from her in the last row sat a humongous, purple-haired giant (the famous basketball center; Murasakibara Atsushi) who just didn't give a shit about _anything;_ let alone studying. Presently, he was delving into a packet of potato chips (the teacher never seemed to notice him like she noticed Hanabi ((she was probably intimidated by the towering boy, who was at least three feet taller than the tallest teacher))).

Sen couldn't pay attention in class. She kept waiting for something bad to happen. Eventually, a pretty girl sitting a seat away, five rows in front of her, threw a crumpled paper ball at her when the teacher turned her back to the class. It smacked her on the head before falling onto her desk. The rest of the class snickered quietly.

Shaking and turning a furious shade of red, Sen opened the paper: "_Stay away from Himuro, you crack whore." _

She resisted the urge to apologize, and instead looked down at her desk dismally, biting her lip. It wasn't her fault. She wished she could go back in time and arrive a few minutes late, so that she might have missed Kikuchi Rina and so, missed Himuro Tatsuya as the freshmen ventured to their class. But what was done was done, and anyway, there was _no_ way this day could get any worse. Sen comforted herself with that fact.

This was when she realized that the teacher had been talking about some sort of project all this time; they were to take samples from a potted plant the school would provide them, and prepare a karyotype to predict the genotype and phenotype of the F1 and F2 generations the plant might produce if self-pollinated. Biology was never her best subject, and the project sounded absolutely terrifying.

This terror increased when she realized that the teacher planned to pair the class up. It might decrease her workload, but the prospect of spending several hours alone with _any _of her peers at that moment was not a very appealing prospect.

_"Okubo and Furuta, Yoshida and Ichida..."_

She could hope to get Himuro Tatsuya as a partner, but then she would probably end up getting slaughtered in her sleep.

"_Kondo and Saito, Kikuchi and Himuro..." _

Well, that option was definitely out, anyway. Six seats in front of her, Kikuchi Rina smirked.

"_Yagami and Amane, __Haruno and Uchiha, Kurosaki and Kurebayashi..." __  
_

Her best hope was to get Kanagawa Hanabi, who was absolutely dreadful at Biology (or any subject, for that matter), but probably wouldn't resent her about the whole Himuro situation. She wasn't half-bad company, anyway...

"_Kanagawa and Akihito, Sorachi and Shinpachi..."_

A bead of sweat appeared on Sen's forehead. She was running out of options. She looked about the class nervously, praying to God that she didn't end up with one of the Inuzuka twins. There were still people in the class, right? She probably would end up with some nice, pleasant, unassuming boy.

And then, when she was last expecting it, the teacher called her name.

"_Iwamura and Murasakibara,_ _Tsugawara and Matsuda..._"

Oh god. Oh my _god. _

_"Chiba and Otsuka, Ando and Takagi.." _

Three seats away from her, Murasakibara Atsushi stopped crunching on his chips, aware that someone had called his name suddenly. It took him a minute to register what the teacher had said, and then his violet eyes began to scan the room lazily, trying to find the so-called Iwamura. Sen swallowed when his beady eyes stopped on her. He raised an eyebrow apathetically before returning to his potato chips.

Sen began to panic. Murasakibara Atsushi. She was paired up with _Murasakibara Atsushi_, the tallest, most intimidating, _strongest_ basketball player in all of Japan. _Murasakibara Atsushi _(Kami, that name was a mouthful), who was rumored to eat tiny little girls like Sen for _breakfast_ (Okay, so there wasn't really a rumor like that, but Sen imagined he _could _do it, all the same).

Luck was _definitely_ not on her side that day.

* * *

Sen swallowed when the bell rang, signaling the end of their Biology period. She had to do it. There was no other option. The teacher had mentioned that this project would be 30% of their semester grade; she could not afford to fail this. She had to speak to Murasakibara Atsushi herself, because there was no _freaking _way Murasakibara-san would come speak to her himself.

Sen gathered every bit of her non-existent courage, and skirted around Kanagawa and the Inuzuka twins before Murasakibara left the class. Fortunately for her, Murasakibara wasn't making any plans to leave the classroom any time soon, slowly eating the last crisps in his packet. He was staring outside lazily, and didn't bother to look when Sen stopped in front of his table.

Good _god_, Murasakibara Atsushi was taller than her standing at full height while he was _sitting_. Sen gulped.

"U-um, M-Murasakibara-san?"

At first Murasakibara Atsushi didn't reply. His strangely drooping, lazy violet eyes kept themselves trained on the sunny sky outside, and he slowly finished crunching the crisps in his mouth. He put another in his mouth before turning around sluggishly to meet Sen's eyes.

"Who're you?" He drawled.

Sen bit her lip, trying not to let her fear show. "I-Iwamura Sen."

She expected his face to loosen up in realization, but he still drawled on lazily. "Who?" The crisps in his mouth crunched noisily; she started shaking in fear. He wouldn't kill her there, would he? Sen's black orbs followed the movement of Murasakibara's jaws: _crunch, crunch, crunch. _

"Y-Your Biology partner."

"For?"

Sen blinked, feeling her heart rate pick up. This was harder than she thought.

"U-um, you know, for the project."

Murasakibara blinked lazily and reached into the packet to tuck another crisp into his mouth. Sen knew it was empty, but the taller purple-haired freshman still rummaged around the packet for more. Upon realizing there were none, he settled on crushing the chips packet in his huge hand - Sen gulped - and licking his fingertips expressionlessly. _  
_

"Project?" He said as if the world itself was a bore. "What project?"

Sen's internal consciousness screamed in protest, refusing to accept that reply. However, her considerably more timid exterior turned a deeper shade of red, and looked down at her feet helplessly.

"T-The Biology project... about the genotype? We're p-partners..." She mumbled quietly.

"What?" He said in the same monotone, his eyes narrowing a little. "I can't hear what you're saying."

Sen froze in all her tomato glory, and forced herself to look up at the intimidating basketball player; he was glaring down at her balefully as if she was nothing more than a irritating fly.

"U-um... The Biology p-project." She stammered, just a bit louder. "I-I'm Iwamura Sen... your partner?"

"Ohhhhhhhh," he dragged, finally realizing what Sen was talking about, "why didn't you just say that before?"

Sen's internal consciousness struggled with not stabbing him.

"U-um, r-right. S-Sorry.." She said, mostly out of habit, "So w-when do we meet?"

"Meet?" The purple-haired giant blinked. "To do what?"

_..._

_Kami-sama, help me?_

"The p-project!" She said a bit helplessly, glancing subconsciously at the clock. She was going to be late for her next class.

Realizing he also had another class to attend, Murasakibara Atsushi stood up from his desk. He towered over the tiny 5 foot nothing munchkin standing before him, who gulped and took several steps back in fear of being crushed like a cockroach. This tiny 5 foot nothing munchkin was now just barely holding onto her mental stability.

Then, the situation went from bad to worse.

"You're so short," Atsushi said, glaring down at Sen, who hunched back in fear, "it makes me _want to crush you." _

_..._

_Really, Kami-sama?_

* * *

**11.30 pm **

(_June 22nd, 2013, Mi__dorima) _

"Oh, _mm... _Tarou-kun," a certain, dark-haired beauty was mumbling sultrily into Midorima Shintarou's ear, of whom was currently very busy with the task of exploring the soft skin under her shirt. "I wish I never had to leave."

_Shintarou, _he corrected mentally.

The green-haired boy did not reply, but instead moved his lips, which had been previously pressed upon the soft spot on her neck, to her lips. The two teenagers pressed against each other more fiercely (as fierce as it could get with Midorima's hand under her shirt) as their lips moved in a frenzy.

As per their daily routine, Inoue Raiha and Midorima Shintarou were having a 'moment' in Midorima's room (his parents were out, and his little sister was fast asleep in her room). The many horoscope-related 'lucky items" Midorima owned were lined up on a shelf opposite the bed (which the two were on) along with all the basketball trophies he owned.

"R-Raiha," Midorima muttered a bit breathlessly, moving his hand further south, where it disappeared under her plaid skirt.

"T-Tarou-kun"- _(God,_ he hated that nickname)- she replied heatedly, gasping more than slightly as she blushed a furious shade of red and rubbed the very obvious tent in his shorts gently. Midorima removed his hands suddenly and pulled the willowy brunette onto his lap, where she pressed into him as the pair kissed.

"A-Ah," she murmured when his hands reached for her panties again, meaning to move them aside. "N-Now.. Here?"

"Yes, nanodayo." He hissed back, "why not? We have before.."

"Y-Yeah, but..." her words cut off with a moan as Midorima got a bit creative with his fingers. Her hands found his shirt; they traveled underneath them as she pressed her nails into her back, sending a current down the tall teenager's skin.

She was _so _good at this.

"But what, nanodayo?" He asked quietly, kissing the skin behind her ear while he ran his fingers down her thigh lightly, teasing her.

To his shock, it was not his girlfriend who replied.

"Could you guys please, for the love of God and _everything_ holy, stop?"

Midorima Shintarou started in surprise, gently pulling the very disheveled Inoue Raiha off his lap and onto his bed. His emerald eyes scanned the room in alarm before locating the source of the voice, a tall blonde sitting awkwardly by his desk with an open book on her lap. Her face was unbearably red, and she was scowling.

"Since when did you get here, _nanodayo__!?" _He exclaimed in shock, adjusting his shirt.

"I've been here all along!" She replied back. "I'm supposed to babysit _that_ horny old man sitting next to you, today."

Midorima blinked. "No way, that can't be."

That was when the chestnut-haired Raiha spoke up. "A-Actually, Tarou-kun," he turned his eyes towards his pretty girlfriend, who was still slightly red, gasping (he flushed with pride; _he _made her this excited). She adjusted the hem of the shirt she was wearing.

"She came here with me. She's my friend; Kaoru."

"Yeah," the blonde offered, "you were so busy sucking face with her as soon as she came in that you didn't realize someone else was there with her."

...

He blinked. "W-What? Really?" Despite himself, a slight blush crept onto his cheeks as he realized something. He turned back to the blonde sitting by his desk - _Kaoru,_ he remembered, _she's in my class_ - who glared back. "And you've just been sitting there watching us?"

She made a face. "Oh, please," she drawled, holding up the book in her lap - _Salvation of a Saint _- before replying, "I spoke up as soon as I realized what you two were planning to do. I was reading my book."

Here, she turned to Raiha, who blushed furiously and opened her mouth to speak before being cut off sharply.

"And _you," _she accused, crossing her arms over her chest, "_you _said you were just going to drop by to give him his lucky item!" The lucky item for the day in question - a pink hairband - sat on Midorima's bed, long forgotten.

Raiha's blush deepened, and she looked up at Midorima with a small smile. They shared a quick glance - she _was _quite pretty - before she spoke.

"W-Well, Tarou-kun-" _Shintarou, _he corrected mentally, "-looked so good with his bed hair... and I couldn't help myself... and then one thing let to another and... we sort of... got off track."

"Got _off track_!?" The blonde replied heatedly, making another face. "You were heading in a completely different direction!" _  
_

He smiled at that. A silence passed between the three as Kaoru, shaking her head disgustedly, returned back to her book. He heard her mutter.

"_... _Infatuated, the both of them... Got the sex drive of a dirty old man..."

Raiha leaned up and surprised him with a kiss suddenly. "I need to use the toilet, Tarou-kun," she smiled, getting up from his bed.

"Hm," he nodded offhandedly, lost in thought. He heard the door click shut, but didn't look up.

_Hanamachi Kaoru, _he adjusted his glasses, _she sits exactly three seats away from me, gets quite high marks in literature. Isn't she one of Coach Takeshi's runners? _

"You're a runner, aren't you?" He asked noncommittally, running a hand through his straight green hair. "I heard you were Raiha's best friend. Nice to meet you."

Kaoru raised an eyebrow, but did not look up from her book.

"Yeah." She replied awkwardly, tucking a strand of her dirty blonde curls behind her ear. He assumed she was only a head shorter than he was; which, by Japanese standards, was quite tall for a high school girl.

Silence, for a while.

"Listen up, Midorima," she said, glancing up from her book, "I don't like you. I hope we're clear with that."

Midorima raised an eyebrow, but did not take offense. He honestly didn't really mind. "Right."

Another awkward silence. Midorima fell back onto his bed. What a weird sort of girl. What kind of person says that directly to another? _I don't like you. I hope we're clear with that. _How odd. He wondered what he ever did to offend her.

More silence. Midorima sort of wished Raiha would not come back; he appreciated silence more than her chatter.

The hostile blonde sitting by his desk spoke up again after a few minutes.

"And for the record, Tarou-kun is a stupid nickname."

His unwilling smile widened.

* * *

**1.30 pm **

_(Haruka, June 22nd, 2013)_

Mrs. Seinen married Mr. Seinen at the tender age of eighteen (he at twenty). They had been high school sweethearts since the middle of their freshmen year; they met at a friend's party and instantly liked each other. Both were very young, yet they were a hundred percent sure that time and tide would flow their way always and forever.

They were, of course, wrong.

Their first dispute was over Haruka. They were unwilling and unprepared for a child when she was born, and neither of them knew anything about baby care.

It was only pure whim (as her mother often reminded her) that saved Haruka's life while she was growing in her womb.

This problem was assisted by the fact that Mr. Seinen started cheating on his wife seven years after Haruka was born. Now just barely holding onto their meager relationship, the unhappy couple divorced not long after Haruto, Haruka's younger brother, was born before a decade had passed into their matrimony.

And thus began Seinen Akira's depression.

"Haruka!" The young girl addressed as thus heard her mother's (once lovely) voice croak out a little after noon on June 22nd, while she was busy preparing lunch for Haruto, who was finishing his homework. Haruka herself had finished all her homework late last night, after her meeting. The meeting about the spring festival, which she would have to again attend at 5pm that day, as well. She made a mental note to drop her little brother off at their aunt's place; her mother didn't seem at all... there, that day.

"Haruka!" She called out again.

She glanced at Haruto, who was dutifully filling out his homework by the dinner table. His dark green hair - exactly the same shade as Haruka and Mr. Seinen's - glinted under the light of the room. She felt a rush of affection towards her obedient little brother, and thanked God that she had him; her only source of sanity.

"_Haruka_!"

"I'm coming, Okaa-san."

The freshman walked into their mother's room; it was dark and murky. Haruka noted it was also getting quite dusty. She put _clean-mom's-room _at the end of her never-ending mental to-do-list. The only light that entered the room filtered in from underneath the drawn curtains, and she had to blink thrice to adjust to the darkness.

Haruka flipped on the lights.

The walls were painted a modest, plain cream. There weren't much furniture in the room aside from her mother's futon and her bedside desk, which Haruka was forbidden to touch. This was fine with her. She wasn't really curious about her mother's belongings.

"Haruka," her mother croaked again, turning her dark eyes towards her, "could you get me a glass of water and an aspirin tablet?"

Seinen Akira was once a very pretty person (Haruka knew because she saw her mother's yearbook), with long, luscious black hair, dark eyes that glittered like a clear, night sky. She had a lovely, smooth face, and a healthy, willowy body. Now, her hopeless eyes had sunken into their sockets, her cheeks were hollow, and her once lovely ebony strands were nothing but a handful knot of stringy threads on the top of her head. She had gotten so unbearably skinny that her ribs stuck out from underneath her now non-existent breasts, and the alcohol - _oh, _the alcohol. Her breath always stank of spirits.

It broke Haruka's heart sometimes.

"Haruka?"

_Please get it yourself, mom. _Haruka wanted to snap, but she dutifully complied, stepping out of her mother's room into her own. She found the aspirin tablets in the medicine cabinet in her toilet and walked back to her mother with one tablet after pouring a glass of water from the kitchen. She waited politely until her mother finished eating the drug.

"Get me some booze from the fridge."

Haruka's throat went dry. _This early? _

"Mom, it's midday. You shouldn't-"

"I'll do what I want." She snapped harshly, and Haruka recoiled. "Do as I say and bring it to me!"

Scowling but silent, she walked out of her mother's room sharply and grabbed the bottle of beer from the fridge. Their only source of money was their rich aunt; who provided them with enough money to live healthily. However, Haruka never stopped feeling guilty about how her mother spent almost a quarter of that money to buy beer. She felt worse about the fact that she knew, yet did nothing to stop it.

A part of her feared her mother, after all.

After giving the bottle to her mother, she contemplated what to do. She had an errand to run before she went to the meeting... But she couldn't very well leave Haruto at home with her mother.

She sighed, reaching for her cell phone. She had no choice but to disturb her aunt, yet again.

* * *

**3.15 pm **

After dropping Haruto off, she wound her way towards a certain street in Tokyo. It wasn't as sunny as it was the day before, and more than a few clouds littered the azure sky. It was breezy, but not breezy enough for her to wear an extra sweater.

It was Haruka's kind of day.

Before she had left yesterday, Haruka had volunteered to find the mysterious Mamoru Enko that Momoi had talked about. They had been each assigned a task to ensure that the meeting actually takes place that day, unlike the previous day. Kaoru had been assigned to babysit Raiha; Sen was to somehow tag along with Rina; and she had volunteered to find Enko.

She was the only one who knew where Mamoru Byakuya lived. Of course she did. He was one of the few tolerable presences at Seiren, after all.

As she walked past the street court on their road, a voice called out to her.

"Haruka!"

She stopped in her tracks and turned towards the basketball court in surprise, recognizing the voice. She stepped onto the court and regarded it's occupants.

"Byakuya-san, I didn't know you played sports."

The short, tanned blackhead grinned cheekily. "I'm a man of many talents." He shot the ball, scoring smoothly.

Next to Byakuya stood a hulking giant with red hair and a terrifying aura - Kagami Taiga (the kid who always got in trouble for sleeping in class) from her class - (Wheeee, he was _tall). _A short, skinny boy with cerulean hair picked up the ball from the ground and shot it back into the basket; he missed. _Kuroko Tetsuya, _she noted duly, the kid who always got _away _with sleeping in class. They were faintly acquainted. The only female in the court was an unfamiliar redhead, who had pasty skin and a lot of freckles.

Kagami Taiga narrowed his eyes at her. "I've seen you somewhere, before."

Haruka raised an eyebrow.

"She's in our class, genius." Byakuya retorted.

Kagami blinked. "What, really?"

Haruka sighed but decided not to give any input. Rather, she went straight down to business.

"I'm looking for a Mamoru Enko."

The boy addressed raised his eyebrows at her, but before he could reply, the pale girl standing at the very back spoke.

"What do you want?"

Haruka turned her attention towards her. She was dressed in a white tank top and a black pair of yoga pants. Her hair was pulled back into a knot at the top of her head, and she was glaring back at her balefully, making her feel a little uneasy. She wasn't one of those _Rina-_type monsters, was she?

She definitely hoped not.

"You're Enko-san?"

"I asked you what you wanted."

Okay. Not a friendly sort.

"Momoi-san was worried about why you didn't show up to the meeting."

Silence. Enko reached for the ball; Tetsuya gave her a swift pass. She fidgeted around with the ball before replying.

"I wasn't interested."

Haruka cocked an eyebrow. "Well, if you're _interested, _we're meeting again today. Same time, same place."

Enko opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off sharply.

"She'll come."

All eyes turned to Byakuya, who stood his ground firmly, crossing his arms over his chest. Enko's brother had answered for her; the latter stared at the former incredulously before exclaiming.

"Onii, I didn't ask for your opinion."

"No, you're going."

Kagami Taiga was the one who replied this time. Enko's expression turned livid as she turned to him, placing her hands on her waist.

"Your input is unneeded, Bakagami."

_Bakagami_?

Haruka saw Tetsuya and Byakuya share a glance.

"You're always holed up at home," Kagami shook his head, "Look at your skin; it's almost see-through. You _need _some sun!"

"What? _How dare you_! Look at those eyebrows!"

Haruka had to bite her lip to hold in a cough of slight laughter.

"Oh, very original, carrot-top!"

_Carrot-top_? This time Haruka actually _did _giggle, but managed to pass it off as a cough.

"_What_ did you just call me?"

"You're going to that meeting, _carrot-top_!"

"Shut _up_!"

"Girls," Byakuya refereed calmly - clearly, this was a common occurrence - as Tetsuya wore a short smile on his face. Haruka's expression mirrored his, "you're both pretty. Now behave. Enko. You will go."

"_But Onii_-"

"No buts."

Mamoru Enko glared at everybody there and harshly flung the basketball towards Kagami - who caught it easily - before stalking off haughtily. She disappeared from their line of vision as she ran down the street, muttering profanities. Haruka watched this exchange, still amused.

"Shouldn't one of you go after her?" She asked quietly.

"Nah," Kagami said, "she'll be fine."

Haruka hesitated before asking her next question to Mamoru Byakuya. "Do you think she'll come?"

"Yeah," Kagami replied, running a hand through his auburn spikes, "She's a hotheaded prick but she's quite alright when it comes down to it, y'know."

Haruka cocked an eyebrow. "I asked Byakuya-san."

Tetsuya spoke up inquisitively. "Kagami-kun has feelings for Enko-san."

Kagami Taiga gripped Kuroko by the collar and lifted him into the air, a vein throbbing in his forehead and his fist aloof. Tetsuya remained impassive.

"I do _not_!"

"Right." Byakuya rolled his eyes and gently patted Kagami on the arm. He let Tetsuya down mutinously. "And I'm not gay."

Haruka's eyebrows went up. "Byakuya-san is gay?"

Byakuya grinned, then winked. "That's right. Sucks for the ladies like you, eh, Haruka?" He slapped his hip seductively. "Kagami here has been trying to screw me for weeks."

Kagami sighed before pretending to whisper. "He likes to think he has a chance. You shouldn't narrow down your preferences like that Byakuya. You're not very attractive." He teased cheekily.

"Kagami-_kuuuuun_!" He dragged, pouting. "You're _so _out of my league."

The auburn-haired giant rolled his eyes before muttering, "we're not even playing the same game."

Haruka almost laughed. What a surprising day. She had developed a potential friendship with Kagami Taiga; Mamoru Byakuya was gay; and her mother touched a bottle before 3pm. She wasn't sure she could handle any more excitement. But in any case, unless she wanted to go the meeting in old sweats, she had to go home and shower.

"Thank you, minna-san." She bowed lightly. "I have to go now. Please do make sure Enko-san comes."

"Got it." Byakuya grinned at her and waved.

"I was going to go home, too." Kuroko Tetsuya said. "Haruka-san and I live quite close by. I'll accompany her there."

"Sure, Kuroko~!"

"Bye, Tetsuya."

Bidding their companions farewell, the two classmates set out to go home together. The late afternoon sun was warm on their arms, but the breezy air balanced it out. The pair walked in silence for a while before Tetsuya spoke.

"How is Haruka-san acquainted to Byakuya-san?"

Haruka smiled. That was a long, long story involving unfinished homework and hairnets. She figured it best to go into details about it later. "He sits next to me in class, Kuroko-san."

"You two are such polar opposites that I could not help but question you about it."

She raised an eyebrow before inquiring politely.

"What about you and Kagami-san, Kuroko-san?"

"We're in the same class, Haruka-san."

"Touche."

They walked in silence for a while. Kuroko Tetsuya was just barely taller than Haruka, and had untamable azure strands. Haruka was sort of envious of his eyes; they were wide, innocent and perfect for guilt-tripping teachers to give her higher grades. Her own eyes were small and a dull, dark green.

They arrived at Haruka's flat very quickly.

"This is me." She murmured and bowed. "Thank you for the company, Kuroko-san."

Kuroko's lips curved up into a small smile. "You too, Haruka-san."

Kuroko Tetsuya wasn't a bad sort.

Haruka's almost happy mood drowned as she climbed up the stairs. And as she shut the door to their apartment behind her just in time to hear her mother start spewing drunken profanities from inside her room, it dissipated completely.

* * *

**4.00 pm **

_(Rina, 22nd June 2013) _

Kikuchi Rina was well aware of the terrified munchkin sitting beside her.

Shinkansen rides from Akita to Tokyo took almost four hours. Iwamura Sen had called and - shakily - asked her whether she would accompany her on the train ride. Rina could not fathom why she did this, as the navy-haired girl spent a lot of her time bullying and taunting the new girl at school. However, she had accepted her invitation with a look of surprise on her face.

Rina did not bother to tell Sen that she lived somewhere on the outskirts of Tokyo.

This meant that she woke up early Saturday morning, rode the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Akita, and spent the rest of her time wandering about in the AEON mall until Iwamura Sen gave her a ring on her cell. Then, the pair promptly got back on the Shinkansen to travel all the way back to Tokyo.

She didn't know why she agreed to doing this. She could have just nicely (okay, not so nicely) told Iwamura that she didn't live anywhere near Akita.

Kikuchi Rina wasn't a very popular sort of girl. She was the girl who _seemed _like the Queen Bee to the weaker hierarchy levels of the student body, because she maintained her position by stepping on others' heads. In reality, Kikuchi Rina was one of the girls who used to get bullied; until Junior High, when she decided enough was enough, and finally snapped back.

She knew _exactly _what it felt like to be so terrified. And she loved seeing that look on another person's face. Because Kikuchi Rina wasn't the only one who should suffer.

But then why did she agree to do this?

It wasn't like she was feeling _guilty _over the fact that a majority of the Akita female population wanted to gut Sen out and sacrifice her entrails to Satan... was she?

Okay, maybe she was.

"This takes quite a while, doesn't it, wimp?"

Sen started, blushed a furious red, and replied to her thighs. "Y-Yeah, it does. W-We're pretty far from T-Tokyo, after all."

The two sat in silence for a while. This _playing nice _thing was not Rina's cup of tea.

"K-K-Kikuchi-san?"

"Rina." Rina interrupted shortly, feeling a little awkward. She looked away from the terrified girl and was met with a business man's armpit. Gross.

"S-S-Sorry?" Sen asked, fidgeting with her fingers.

"You can call me Rina."

Sen's blush deepened. "O-Oh." She looked down at her thighs again. "U-Um, T-Thank you, Rina-san."

"Hn."

The two remained silent for the remainder of the journey.

* * *

**4.45 pm **

_(Aomine, 22nd June 2013) _

Aomine Daiki loved the feeling of imminent rain. It was just _slightly _cloudy now, but he felt like it would rain later on in the night. He loved that feeling. He loved how the sun just barely shone through the clouds and fell on his face. He also loved Teriyaki burgers. Tokyo had really good Teriyaki burgers. There was one more thing he loved, and it was walking next to him in all her pink, creamy glory.

"Dai-chan," Momoi was scolding him presently, "I told you not to cut practice for me!"

"Yeah, yeah," Aomine brushed off, yawning, "I wasn't cutting practice for _you._"

But he totally was.

"I'm cutting practice for _me,_" He continued arrogantly, tucking his hands behind his head while he walked. "Besides, I know you're going to pick up that Riko girl from Seiren before you go, so you won't be alone." _  
_

He knew _everything, _of course.

"But _still!" _Momoi pouted. "I'm the manager! It's my job to make sure you go!"

"Oh shut up, Satsuki, it's not like I'm playing."

Momoi gave him another glare, but dropped the subject. Aomine observed her from the very corner of his eyes. She wasn't _terribly _short, standing at 5"3; he was just really tall. He imagined what it might be like to hold her petite little hands in his darker, larger ones as they walked like this.

But of course he couldn't do that.

Because Satsuki Momoi loved Kuroko Tetsuya; not Aomine Daiki.

Dai-chan was a really stupid nickname, but he loved it. He loved how she calls him Dai-chan, like they used to when they were younger. He couldn't remember how she started doing that - nicknaming people she cares about - but it was a nice attribute of hers, though slightly annoying.

Pity she never called him Dai-chan in public. In public, it was always "Aomine-kun," because if not, "people are gonna talk."

Whatever the hell that meant. What was the problem if "people talked"? Aomine wouldn't really mind. There was no point in caring about what _other people _thought.

He wondered whether Momoi cared about what _he _thought of her. He wondered whether Momoi thought of him like this, at all.

Probably not.

It was at that moment when his cell phone (pink, like her hair) rang. He dug into his pockets, pulled it out and flipped it open.

_"Aominecchiiiiiiiiiiii_!" An excited voice squealed, hurting his ears.

Kise Ryouta. A boy who always, _always_ got too close for comfort. He winced, and Momoi gave him a curious look.

"You're going to ruin my hearing, Kise."

"Oh, it's Ki-chan?" Momoi commented. "I wonder what he wants."

"Are you free tonight? I'm _bored_!"

Aomine sighed. "I'm not going on a date with you, Kise."

"_No,_ no!" He was so incessantly loud. "I was hoping you, me, Midorimacchi and Kurokocchi could go out. Guys night!"

"And why do you think I would agree to that?" He smirked.

"Because I'm telling Momoi you love her if you don't."

The smirk fell off his face and he paused in his tracks, blushing. "Dai-chan?" Momoi questioned, looking back at him.

"What time?" Aomine rolled his eyes; he could jusy imagine the blond smirking.

"Nine. At _Konokokoro_'s. I'll see you theeeeeeere~!"

Aomine held the phone away from his ear, but still caught his next words. "_TALK TO YOU LAAAAATER, AOMINECCHIIIIIIII-" _

_Click. _

Aomine sighed. "Kise Ryouta is always way too loud." He muttered, stowing the phone back in his pocket. Momoi laughed lightly.

"What did Ki-chan want?"

"To meet up." He said shortly, because they had just arrived at the place where Momoi had agreed to meet up with Riko. The latter stood by a lamppost, and smiled when the pair reached up to them.

"Let's hope things actually work out, today." She said brightly, and she shared a knowing glance with Momoi. Aomine had no idea what she was talking about. Women.

He turned around on his heel, then, and started walking away, like he had planned. He was never very good with conversation, and more so with females he didn't know.

_Besides_, He thought seriously, _there's something I gotta do. _

"Eh, Aomine-kun?"

_"Aomine-kun"._

"I'm off. Bye." He lifted up a hand in farewell. He looked back and answered Momoi's confused expression with a downright lie.

"I thought you _wanted _me to go to practice."

He could practically feel Momoi's eyes narrow; he could practically hear her brain whizzing as she tried to figure out what he was _really_ up to.

And then it clicked.

"Aha!" She accused, and Aomine winced. "You're going to go home and read that porn magazine!"

_Shit. _

"It's _gravure_!" He corrected somewhat indignantly, turning around to face the pinkette, who stuck her tongue out at him.

"Porn."

"_Gravure_!"

* * *

**4.55 pm **

_(Kaoru) _

Hanamachi Kaoru was always punctual. But on this particular day; June 22nd, 2013, she chose to come early.

The garden gazebo was empty when she and Raiha sat down on the right row of benches, as expected. The usually chatty Raiha was understandably quiet and hesitant about the meeting, considering the previous evening's events. Even the more than slightly impassive Kaoru was feeling anxious about the meeting. She couldn't even concentrate properly on the ending of her book, which was held open on her lap.

A minute passed by uneventfully. Raiha tucked a strand of her brunette waves behind her ear nervously.

Two minutes. Outside, a little kids laughter could be heard, followed by the worried shout of a parent.

As the third minute passed, Kise Kumiko entered the pavilion. She looked around the place warily; the remaining two girls shared a look: they all knew who she was looking for.

"She's... not here?" She asked uncertainly. Today, she was wearing black bell pants and a plain white button down shirt. Her straight blonde hair fell loosely around her shoulders; she looked absolutely gorgeous. _As expected of Kise's sister_, Kaoru thought dryly.

"Not yet." Raiha mirrored the older blonde's expression.

The moderator sat down in front of them and started scribbling something on her clipboard whilst muttering, "let's hope we actually get something done, today."

"Yeah, I hope so, too." A new voice said. Kaoru looked up from her book again to find Seinen Haruka enter the gazebo gracefully and sit down next to Kumiko. Raiha smiled at her; Kaoru nodded stiffly. Kumiko turned to the emerald-haired teen.

"Haruka, did you manage to contact Enko?"

She nodded.

"Yeah, Enko-san said she'll be-"

"-here." An unfamiliar voice finished. A sullen redhead stood by the northern doorway of the gazebo. She was paler than anybody Kaoru ever saw. "Will this take very long?" She asked moodily.

"No, an hour at the most." Kumiko smiled sweetly at the new arrival. "You must be Enko-san."

"Hmm." The redhead grunted impassively, sitting down next to Raiha. "Nice to meet you."

Kumiko replied quickly, relieved that she was more polite than Rina. "It's very nice to meet you too." Then, she briefly introduced the girls sitting in the pavilion. She nodded at each of them a bit awkwardly.

"We have four more committee members; Momoi-"

"I know _her_."

The tone of her voice somehow did not make Kumiko very comfortable. "Um, Riko, Sen and Rina. Riko's from Seirin, and Sen and Rina are from Yosen."

"Okay." She replied shortly. Kaoru noted that she wasn't much of a conversationalist. _Good_, she thought. _We've got more than enough live ones here._

"Is Rina coming with Sen?" Raiha asked in surprise. "_Really_?"

Kaoru did not reply to this. Kumiko spoke instead.

"She'll be fine."

"Who'll be fine?"

Everyone looked up to see Riko and Momoi enter the gazebo together. It had been the brunette who spoke.

"Sen."

"Oh," Momoi said, sitting down next to Haruka; Riko took a seat near Enko, "yeah, she'll be fine." The pinkette said in a falsely bright tone. She didn't convince anyone.

_I hope. _

Kaoru did not say this out loud, but she still thought it was a stupid idea.

"Who'll be fine?" An all too familiar voice questioned. All of the heads in the shelter snapped towards the southernmost entry, where a short, dark and timid teen followed a navy-haired beauty into the pavilion. Kaoru saw Raiha sink further into her seat.

"No one." Kumiko answered quickly, shooting Enko, who had been absent for the previous meeting, a _please-play-along_ look. The bored-looking redhead did not react, anyway. Rina and Sen sat down next to Haruka and Enko respectively. Haruka did not look very happy about this.

A short silence followed this; the atmosphere of the somewhat humid afternoon was very tense. Feeling uncomfortable, Kaoru snapped her book shut and gently put it into the sidebag slung around her shoulder.

"So," Kumiko started a bit nervously, "um, welcome to the spring festival committee of 2014's very first proper meeting. I hope you're all doing well."

Murmurs of assent followed.

"Well, I'm not going to lead this committee. I'm just the moderator." She smiled and handed the clipboard and pen to Riko, who took it with a surprised look.

"As per tradition, committee leader will be the oldest. This year, it's Riko. Any objections?"

There were none.

"Lovely." She nodded at Riko. "I'll hand it to you from here, then."

The brunette still had a bewildered expression on her face, but she read the page on top of the clipboard quickly; it was a list of all the necessities for the festival. The rest they were allowed to input themselves.

"U-um, yeah," She started awkwardly, "so. First things first, we, um, need to elect a treasurer and a secretary and stuff. Any volunteers?"

"Haruka-chan is pretty good with figures." Momoi offered. "She'd make a good treasurer."

All eyes turned to her, and Haruka shrugged impassively. "I don't mind." She said quietly.

"Er, any objections?" Riko asked awkwardly.

Again, there were none.

"Uh, okay, so Haruka's the treasurer," she scribbled down while reading aloud, "and for the secretary?"

Three seats away from Kaoru, next to Riko, the shy teen with the black bob raised her hand up.

"U-u-um, I c-can do it."

Riko smiled at the younger girl. "Sure." She scribbled this down as well before saying. "Write minutes, okay?"

Sen nodded shyly in reply, pulling out a pen and a notebook from her bag.

"All in favor?"

More murmurs of assent. Kumiko adjusted her glasses and glanced around the room; particularly at the uncharacteristically silent Rina. She was probably not paying attention, looking at the orange sky outside.

Riko looked slightly more comfortable, now. "We need to decide on a place."

Rina spoke up for the first time, then. "Why don't we have it somewhere near a mall, where people visiting can drop by."

A silence followed this. Kaoru could see a lot of flaws in this plan, but she kept quiet. No need to have her head plucked off her body just yet.

To everyone's surprise (and horror) it was Raiha who spoke up. "That woud cause traffic problems, Rina."

A pregnant pause followed this statement as the two adversaries shared a glance briefly before looking away. Rina's expression soured, and everyone in the room held their breath as she opened her mouth to speak.

"You've... got a point there."

Everyone sighed in relief. Kaoru could almost feel the tension seep out of the room. It seemed to everyone that whatever problem they had, the pair had agreed to put it behind them and carry on.

"Why don't we have it here, at the park?" Momoi piped up cheerfully.

"That's a not a bad idea." Kumiko agreed.

Someone else spoke up, but Kaoru was no longer paying attention. Her book lay open on her lap. She wasn't particularly interested in the spring festival, and so gave a few _mmhm_s and _yeah_s every now and then, but otherwise kept quiet. Her thoughts drifted here and there before landing on one certain subject; her father would have returned home from Canada by the time she returned home. She couldn't wait to see him.

* * *

_(Haruka) _

The meeting went very well.

The teenagers managed to decide on a place for the spring festival, and even deduced the amount of money they would need from MEXT in order to carry the festival out effectively. Raiha and Rina had been on their best behavior, and even the apathetic Enko had given a bit of an input every now and then. The only person who Haruka thought hadn't paid any attention was the slightly (okay, more than slightly) cynical Kaoru.

As she headed home, she thought of the day she had. Comparatively, it had been a good day; very aesthetically pleasing. She had talked to a lot of people; and though she wasn't ready to call any of them her _friends _(except for maybe Momoi) just yet, they weren't altogether a bad sort. She wondered whether the unlikely bunch would start growing on each other anytime soon.

Probably not.

She reached the door to her apartment and looked up; towards the brightly lit window of the second floor on the right. Her home.

* * *

A rustle of sheets. Broken glass on the floor. Drops of blood. Hollow eyes following the movement of the fan as it slowed down. Bloody footprints on the sofa as she climbed up.

One choice.

The easy way out. And she was going to take it.

* * *

Haruka was having a relatively good day until she opened the door to her apartment at precisely 8.01 pm. The first thing she noticed was the bloody parquet and the broken glass littering the floor. Then, she lifted her eyes up to the still fan, where a bedsheet was fashioned around it like a rope, expertly knotted to form a noose.

Too horrified to even scream, Haruka caught her mother's gaze just as she slipped the noose over her head.

* * *

**A/N: **Please review? Big thanks to the guest reviewer, by the way!


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